Being Human
by Canuck101
Summary: The Fate of Humanity is set on the shoulders of children who are no longer 'Human'. When Angels attack, can the things we fear the most save us? ShinjiXAsuka. A Werewolf, A Vampire, and A Ghost.
1. Chapter 1

BEING HUMAN

Chapter:1

Out Of The Hands Of Mankind

Disclaimer: I do not own Evangelion.

"_Disconnect and self destruct one bullet at a timeWhat's your rush now, everyone will have his day to die"_ Outsider- A Perfect Circle

_NERV- 2017_

"Sir, I'm at a loss of words, there is no scientific explanation for the 1st Child's condition" Akagi Ritsuko running a hand through her bleached blond hair in frustration as she fumbled for words. "It's not that she should be dead, it's more like she _is_ dead" the doctor continued, trying hard to sense of the situation. "We can see her, and we can hear her when she speaks, but she seems to be composed of something that isn't physical, like she's a…"

"A ghost" a deep emotionless voice finished for her. The Commander of NERV sat behind his desk, his Vice-Commander standing to his left. Gendo was unfazed by the doctor's report, it was like nothing ever bothered the man, even something as dire as this, as if he already knew what happened even without the necessity for him to hear an explanation. It was unnerving how at ease he was with things that cause the bravest of men to run screaming as mad as hell, he motioned with his gloved hand for Ritsuko to continue her report.

"Yes Sir. A year ago I would have been convinced that there was no such thing as- as ghosts, but after the attacks on the 2nd and 3rd Child, there are no rational explanations so I can only agree with you. Whereas the other two Children's piloting shouldn't be affected by their _new _conditions, we are currently unable to pull out another Rei since her ghost seems to be… haunting the GEO Front."

"Will she be able to pilot the way she is now?" Fuyutsuki asked from the sidelines.

Ritsuko sighed "We're talking about someone who can walk through walls and has no real physical body. Rei does seem to give off a wavelength pattern that is similar to brain waves. Her control is also improving as well on her _current_ stat. We have observed that she can move objects and touch others for a short period of time. If she continues to improve and with some adjustments to Unit 00 she should be able to pilot with few incidences."

The Commander linked his hands together in front of his face and leaned forward slightly.

"How long will it take Dr. Akagi?"

The faux blond woman shook her head unsure as she scanned her notes, "Not anytime soon, Sir. Between Rei's improving control and the changes we have to make to the Plug and the EVA it will take at least two months or four tops."

"Understood. You are to start the changes to Unit 00 immediately as ordered in this meeting, you are dismissed Dr. Akagi."

The two men watched as the doctor left the office, "Fuyutsuki" Ikari Gendo turned his attention to the older man standing beside him, "Send a message to the 3rd child, tell him to come to Tokyo 3. Tell him that I have a use for him."

_One Week Later_

"Due to an emergency all circuits are busy now. Please head immediately to the nearest shelter for any assistance."

"Well, that can't be good" Shinji mumbled to himself as he hung up the pay phone. As he turned to look around at the deserted street something caught his eye. A girl was standing in the middle of a deserted street, she was around his age in a school uniform with blue hair. The 3rd Child watched as she slowly flickered out of existence.

"Hmm" he snorted lightly "guess things just might get interesting while I'm here."

At that moment his ears picked out the sounds of gun fire and explosions in the far distance. Much too far for a normal person to be able to here, but it had been about ten months since he stopped being a normal 'person'.

'_What in blazes is going on? _He thought as a fighter jet flew past right overhead, not a second later a missile zoomed by. Shinji covered his ears and dropped to the ground as the missile exploded nearby, he jumped back up to his feet and saw where or rather what the missile had been aimed at. The creature was almost a hundred meters tall, it was in a mock shape of a human being. It had no visible neck and large and powerful looking shoulders covered in what looked like pale armour. A white round mask with a pointed nose sat on the dark flesh served as the creatures head. Shinji didn't know what it was, but he knew it was the most dangerous thing he had ever seen in his _life_, and that was saying a bit.

He was awaken from his stupor by the sound of screeching tires behind him, he turned to see a car door open, revealing a young woman with dark purple hair, he had a vivid image of a typical Western TV show where the heroine would arrive in a hot car while the hero was caught in a crossfire. "Ikari Shinji?" The woman asked through the din of the explosion and confusion and all Shinji could do was nod his head. "Good, I'm Misato. Get in the car, I'm taking you to your father." Shinji didn't need to be told twice. He leaped over the roof of the car and landed beside the passenger's side door easily. Misato looked at him with wide eyes as he got in the car, "Awfully fit for a kid your age, huh?" She said before taking off like a bat out of hell.

"You look a lot different than the pictures we have of you." Misato commented as the car swerved to avoid a lamp post as she ran an eye over the young boy, taking in his blue jeans, white t-shirt and dusty brown leather jacket along with his physique before handing Shinji a thick folder that had 'Welcome to NERV' (_For Your Eyes Only_) on it_. _Inside of the folder there was a picture of himself eleven months ago, before the 'attack' happened to him. The boy in the picture was thin, maybe less than a hundred and forty pounds, with well kept hair and grey blue eyes, but since the picture where he allegedly hit his 'growth spurt' Shinji had grown about eight inches taller and gained about fifty pounds of muscle. His hair was a bit longer and shaggier when in the picture, and as for his eyes, they no longer seemed sad and lifeless, they were wild, free, and full of life in them.

"I- well- uh- I hit a growth spurt" Shinji explained nervously, hoping he sounded more convincing then he was showing. He wasn't bothered by the high speeds the car was going, if anything he was enjoying the drive. His only regret was that he wasn't outside, running along with the car, feeling the wind through his hair and the earth under his feet.

"That's _one hell_ of a growth spurt" Misato whistled appreciatively. "You're pretty calm considering everything that's just happened"

"Really? You think so?" Shinji offered a small smile. "I'm used to weird stuff happening to me. I would like to know what that thing is, though." As he pointed again at the Angel now towering most of the buildings on the outskirts of Tokyo-03.

"You're a lot different than I thought you would be." The older woman smiled back. "I thought you'd be a lot… meeker. And to answer your question, that thing is an 'Angel'."

Shinji was about to ask her what she meant when he noticed something odd, it was as if all he could hear was the sound the car. It was like someone turned off all the sounds outside the car that made his hair stood on end. A cold chill ran up his spine, "Get down!" he yelled at the top of his lungs and threw his arms over Misato, pushing her head down. A shockwave instantly hit the car and sent it airborne, flipping in mid air until it landed on its roof. Both of the passengers crawled out of the car with no major injuries.

"Shinji, are you all right?" Misato asked. The boy nodded and looked around, noticing that most of the outskirts of the city had been destroyed by some kind of explosion. "What the- HELL were they thinking, using an N2 mine!" Misato yelled , turning to her car "And my car's totalled! I only had 24 more payments. How the hell are we going to get to the base now?"

Shinji walked over to the car and put his hand underneath it, and with an effortless grunt, pulled up until the car flipped on to its wheels. As he turned to the woman he saw her staring at him with her mouth agape. "I work out?" He offered with a shrug of innocence. They got into the car and drove off in silence, Misato sending an occasional glance toward the boy sitting next to her. He was so clouded in mystery that she wondered how did he know that the N2 mine was about to go off, how was he so strong enough to flip the car by himself, and how was it possible for him to change so much in only ten months? For a boy who was sixteen he looked more like he was eighteen or even twenty for crying out loud, and he's still in high school?

They entered a tunnel that leads to a vehicle elevator platform, when they parked on the platform it began to descend. After a short time in the dark a sight unlike any other came into few. An under fortress, known as the- "GEO Front! That's the real GEO front! Goddamn-" Shinji stopped and looked at Misato. "I mean- Wow."

"Yup! Our secret base of operations- NERV HQ" Misato smiled at the boy's surprise. "The Keystone for the resurrection of the world and the **stronghold of humanity**"

_Later, inside the base_

"You're lost, aren't you?" Shinji asked. It had became obvious after ten minutes that the young woman had no idea where they were going.

"Define 'lost' Mr. Ikari?" Misato laughed nervously.

Shinji sighed, as an _ANGEL _was rampaging up at the surface, he was sure this wasn't going to help. So he took a deep breath, letting air fill his nose. A scent he didn't recognize was in the air, it smelled like blood but somehow it was a _bit_ different. He smell people along with the unusual scent, if there was group of people around it was most likely where they were meant go. "Let's go this way" He said pointing and walking at the same time, following the smell he attributed to being _un-lost_.

After walking for another ten minutes they reached an elevator that Misato finally recognized. When they reached the level that was their destination, the elevator doors opened to reveal a scowling blond woman, curiously her eyebrows are brown. "Captain Katsuragi" the woman looked surprised but frowned at the same time, "You're actually on time."

Misato stuck her tongue out at the blond. "Yeah, it seemed that little Shinji here knew where he was going" She was unable to keep her confusion out of her voice.

"Not so little" The blond woman smiled as she did an over-all look of him, "I'm Akagi Ritsuko from the first engineering division- the supervisor of project E" she introduced herself. "You must have been following the smell."

Shinji's eyebrows shot up in surprise "You know that I'm-"

"I know everything I need to know about you, Shinji" The doctor nodded her head as Misato sniffed the air saying she didn't smell anything. "Follow me, there's something I want to show you before you meet your father."

As they walked down the hallway a voice came on over the speaker. "_First Wave Personnel To Battle Stations! Repeat, First Wave Personnel To Battle Stations! Prepare To Initialize Anti Ground Attack Unit 01"_

"What do they mean? With Rei in a coma there's no one to pilot Unit 01, right?" Misato asked.

"We found a reserve pilot" was the only answer Ritsuko would give.

They entered a dark room with the light off. Even though there was no light, Shinji's eyes could make the outline of something large sticking out of some kind of water. The smell of blood was thick in this rooms, if he didn't know better, he'd say that there was a river of it. The lights came on and he saw that they were standing on a platform in front of some kind of robotic head just above the red water the rest of it was in. He could tell from the smell that the robot was somehow alive and he had a strange feeling that the red water was the thing's blood. "What in blazing hell is that?"

"You most likely know already that she's not really a robot." The doctor kept her eye on the machine as she spoke. "She's a manmade all purpose battle weapon, **Artificial Human Evangelion**. It's the last chance for humanity, and this is the first unit."

"So this is what my father has been working on all these years" Shinji said in awe.

"That's right Shinji" said a voice that Shinji hadn't heard in years. "It's been while, hasn't it." There, standing in a door way above the Evangelion was the man he knew as 'Father'. A burning in his chest lit up like wild fire and his hand began to shake as rage made his eyesight red. A roaring in his head blared as the beast inside his heart cried for blood! Oh, how he wanted to sink his teeth into the man's neck and rip out his throat. "Now listen to what I have to say carefully Shinji, you are going to ride her, and fight the Angel."

"Why the fuck do you think I should do anything for you?" Shinji yelled, his anger getting the best of him. He knew it was the beast making him so wild, making him so angry. It wanted nothing more than to feast on this man's innards for abandoning his son. And he wanted to let it so bad, yet he was still keeping himself under control.

"If you don't do this, all of Humanity will perish." The Commander's voice was cold. as if he was talking to a stranger instead of his son. "The very existence of the Human race rests on your shoulders."

"And why should I give a fuck about the fate of the Human Race!" The boy screamed as his eyes went from their normal blue to a feral hazel-gold. His whole body shook as his muscles stiffened and his tendons cracked with the tension, it felt like he was going to convulse and attack anything in front of him.

But suddenly he stopped shaking as quickly as he started it, and looked down at the ground. "That's it, isn't it?" He chuckled, not looking up at his father's cold stare. "This is how I can prove my humanity huh? Strange how the fate of people like you is in the hands of someone like me," He looked up at the Commander, his eyes once again blue, the convulsions on his muscles seemed like a thing of the past. "I'll do it, I'll pilot your damn robot father!"

_Inside the EVA_

"Cooling down cycle complete! All internal cage systems in docking position! Pilot has reached the cockpit position within the Entry Plug!"

"Roger! Inserting Entry Plug!"

Shinji felt the Entry Plug shake as it entered the EVA. He was a little uncomfortable, the plug was both confined and claustrophobic and he can't help but feel… trapped. Somehow, he didn't like it. No, he just didn't like it, he hated it.

"Plug lock-in procedure complete! Initiating first level interface! Flooding Entry Plug!"

"What the Hell!" Shinji yelled as the Entry Plug started to fill up with the red liquid, he pounded slightly on the ceiling as the fluid reached up to his chest and panic welled-up in him at the same time, "You trying to kill me here or something!"

"Don't be alarmed" Ritsuko's voice came over the inter com. "Your lungs are being saturated in LCL, you'll be able to undergo direct oxygen exchange through the LCL."

Shinji calmly let the liquid into his lungs, and almost instantly began to breath normally. He didn't miss the fact that the LCL tasted like real blood.

"Main power connected! All circuits fully functional! Initiating power-up sequence!"

"A10 Neural synapses operating within normal limits! First contact all clear!"

"Opening reciprocal circuits!"

"Synch rate at 63%!"

"Synchronization errors are within 0.3%!"

"This is incredible!" Ritsuko gasped. "It's actually going to work."

Misato took charge with a nod from Ritsuko, "Evangelion Unit 01 Prepare To Launch!"

"Releasing primary lock bolt!"

"Release confirmed! Releasing umbilical bridge!"

"Releasing primary and secondary restraints!"

"Releasing safety locks one through fifteen!"

"Internal battery fully charged! External power outlet nominal!"

"Transporting EVA Unit 01 the launch elevator!"

"Gate Five standby! Launch path clear!"

"All green! Launch preparations are complete!"

"Roger" Misato turned the command desk. "Commander Ikari, do we proceed?"

"Of course" He confirmed from behind his folded hands "If we fail to defeat the Angel Humanity has no future."

Misato nodded her head "Right" she turned to the bridge "EVA, Launch!"

Shinji felt gravity push down on him as the EVA was launched up toward the surface. The sudden stop was just as unpleasant, but when he opened his eye, not remembering closing them, he was face to face with the Angel. "This it Shinji." Misato said over the intercom, "Safety locks open, EVA, lift off!"

"All you have to think about walking and it'll walk" Ritsuko instructed "It'll do what every you think of-" she seemed to lose her voice as she saw the EVA take a crouching position. _No_, she thought. _there's no way he's thinking about-"_

As to prove her right, the EVA leapt forward, running hard and staying close to the ground. The Angel shot a beam of energy from its hand, which missed the EVA. When the EVA reached the angel it pushed itself upwards, striking it's middle with a powerful uppercut.

"… leaves me alone for ten years" Shinji growled as he struck the white mask with a right hook of his Evangelion, sending the Angel flying to land on its back sending concrete and half a block of pavement into the surrounding buildings. "He doesn't even bother to call, sends a letter, probably got someone else to write it anyway," he hissed to clenched teeth stemming his anger and frustration. "Not even a freakin' 'Hello Shinji, it's nice to see you- wow you've grown so much!" the rage was building up inside, the beast clawing its way through his mind, trying to break the surface. His eyes turned to the previous feral hazel-gold, his canines started to lengthen, "Instead it's 'Boy, get into my giant robot and kill a fucking _**Angel**_'!"

"Disconnect the video feed from the Entry Plug" The Commander ordered as the 3rd Child's voice was reduced to a rasping sound, "No need for us to be worried about how he looks, concentrate on the readings."

Ritsuko nodded while Misato looked confused. "Shinji" The doctor said into the com. "we're turning of the video feed. Feel free to let loose on the Angel." She turned off the feed and turned to the Commander, _'That should at least make him more comfortable.'_

_Cutting the video feed, huh?_ Shinji thought. _At least the old man is smart enough to let me have my privacy when I change._ Shinji began to shake and convulse as his muscles began to expand. His nose changed into a snout and his jaw stretched with it. His ears became pointed and hair sprouted over his arms, legs, chest and face as his shirt was ripped by the sudden change in his body mass.

"Sudden mass build up detected in the Entry Plug! Synch rate reading at 87%" Maya gasped "Reading a weight change with the pilot" the young woman paled "P-p-pilot's c-current weight is over four hundred and twenty pounds!"

"What? That impossible!" Misato shouted and almost shoved her nose at the terminal.

"Ignore all physical reading and concentrate on the synch readings" The Commander order, making eye contact with Ritsuko who just nodded, understanding the situation.

"Shinji, are you ok?" Misato asked, worried despite the Commander's calm tone.

"**I'm fine**" Growled a voice far too deep to be human. Misato's eyes widened in shock, and look at the Commander, who waved it off by simply not even moving. "**I'm going to finish this, where is it's weak spot**?"

"The red core on its chest" Ritsuko answered for Misato, as she was too stunned to even reply or think straight, she was mumbling something about a bear or something hairy that was incoherent for everyone else. "Destroy the red core and the Angel will die."

"**Done**" Shinji growled as he grasped the control yokes firmly with his claws almost crushing it with his strength. He was in complete bliss, as the change always brought. He felt the power flow through his every muscle, and felt a peace that he never really felt with anything else. He was one with the beast called Evangelion, and this _fucking Angel_ was about to find out what it meant to get in the way of a pissed off werewolf.

The EVA leapt at the Angel as it tried to stand up doing a cork landing at the Angel smashing into its stomach fluids, and debris flying everywhere. With a feral roar it grabbed the two horn-like protrusion on its side and gave a mighty tug. Some kind of violet blood spurted from the Angel's chest as the horns were torn asunder at the combined strength of the pilot and the Eva. Using a piece of the shattered horn as a makeshift cutting weapon the Evangelion started to slam down onto the core with its fist. Slamming its whole arms into the core as it cracked at the assault. The Angel tried in vain to fight back and stand up to regain some advantage, but he kept pounding the core and its mask alternately in a sick kind of rhythm. The core of the Angel cracked to its limit until the EVA roared in time with Shinji and drove it's hand straight through the core shattering it and to the Angel's chest. The abomination bubbled up and exploded with the force of an N2 mine, blood rained down as the residue of the blast covered the street and washed at the buildings, the Angel's blood looked familiar and Shinji couldn't help but notice that it looked a lot like LCL.

_Back at NERV HQ_

Misato stood outside the Entry Plug with Ritsuko waiting for Shinji to exit, when the boy opened the Plug door and stepped out the two women raised their eyebrows at Shinji's state of dress. The tattered remains of his shirt were in his right hand while his pants were covered in rips and tears. He followed their eyes down and grinned at them nervously "Erm- It got awfully rough in there. Is there a way that it won't be so hard on my clothes next time?"

Ritsuko smiled back, knowing just what the boy meant "Don't worry Shinji" she reassured "We'll make it so it's easier for you to pilot if you promised to reach that same synch rate again every single time. Now let's get you checked out before we send you home"

"Oh!" a thought suddenly came to him, "Where am I supposed to stay? Not… my Father's right…?"

Ritsuko almost chuckled at that thought, but turned her eyes towards Misato as the Captain smiled like a cat who just found a mouse. "You'll be staying at my Apartment" the purple haired woman grinned "I just moved in, so it's a little messy, I really hope you don't mind. It'll make things easier since I've been made your guardian."

The three were watched from above as they walked off towards the medical ward so Shinji could be checked over. "Strange" Fuyutsuki mused "That the future of the human race is in the hands of Children who are not even _human_."

"It's most likely better this way" The Commander returned "They who have lost their humanity treasure it more than humans would. Humans would always take their humanity for granted, they don't realize how important it is. They go on living their ignorant lives, while there are those who would give anything to live a normal life, they continue to live without realizing how precious the life they have really is."

"I understand," Fuyutsuki nodded "But how will this affect the scenario?"

"If anything it will improve our chances, because Instrumentality can offer them the one thing they want the most" The Commander smiled at the older man's confused look "It can offer them back their humanity."

_Misato's apartment_

"So Ritsuko told me that the Entry Plug's instruments malfunctioned, saying that my weight was really heavyor something." Shinji started the conversation as they walked down the hallway to the apartment, knowing that Misato would start to ask question soon enough. Ritsuko promised him that she would fix the instruments so that they wouldn't detect the change in weight the next time he changed. She said she would also put a voice filter in his comm. Ritsuko was helping as much as she could so that he could keep his secret. It was part of the deal for him so he can continue to fight the Angels in a 'normal' kind of way. NERV would help him live something resembling a normal 'human' life. That and he'd paid of course.

"Yeah, your comm. was damaged too, you sounded like a talking bear" Misato faked a smile and chuckled a bit. She wasn't stupid, she knew there was something going on, but she wants Shinji to go and tell her. What bothered was that Ritsuko seemed to know and wasn't sharing. She'd have to find out on her own, and the best way was to play along for now until Shinji trusted her.

When they reached the apartment, Misato entered first while Shinji stood there staring at the threshold. A new home, a new beginning, another chance at being human. Sure, being the pilot of a giant robot wasn't a normal life, but at least he could live it like a human, maybe gain some friends, maybe meet a girl. He took a step over the threshold and smiled. "I- I'm home… I guess…"

Looking around the apartment the boy couldn't help but grimace. There was stack about stack of take-out containers and beer cans. '_A little messy?'_ Shinji thought as his sensitive nose began to itch, '_This looks more like a trash heap than an actual apartment'_ Misato notice the look on her new charge's face. "So maybe it's more than a 'little messy', but it's still home."

"It's fine" Shinji sighed. It was a good thing he was good at taking care of himself, it looked like he would have to be cleaning up after his new roommate as well. "So Misato" Shinji decided to change the subject. "You said there are other pilots, right? How come they couldn't pilot Unit 01?"

"We have two other pilots right now" Misato answered as she sat down with a can of beer in her hand. "One is in Germany while Unit 02 is being completed. The other pilot, Rei, had an accident while Unit 00 was being activated and is in a deep coma at the moment." She cracked the top of beer, took a big gulp out of it before looking off into space thoughtfully.

"You know" she started "It's been kind of weird, I keep getting reports from the techs and other staff that they've seen her around, or just a glimpse of her before she vanishes. What's weirder is that she's not allowed visitors, so I haven't even seen her since the accident. Anyone else I'd say that the staff was just seeing things, but a pale girl with blue hair and red eyes is a little hard to miss."

Shinji's eyes widened at this revelation, but he quickly hid his reaction. If they were telling Misato that Rei was in a coma it was probably to cover up the truth. If Rei was the girl that Shinji had seen right before seeing the Angel then she must have had been injured more seriously than what they told Misato. Shinji knew a ghost when he saw one, and the blue haired girl was as dead as JFK. '_Can a ghost still pilot?'_ he wondered. "I hope she gets better soon." He said, trying to sound sincere, despite knowing that the girl would never recover at all.

"I hope so too, I don't want you to be fighting all those Angels all by yourself, right?" Misato continued drinking her beer happily. She opened Shinji's personnel file and frowned, "It says here you have a medical condition that make you sick for three days a month, it says here that it's so bad that you shouldn't go to school on those days. They even have the estimated dates for the days you'll be sick written down here." Misato looked up at Shinji suspiciously as if ready to tackle him at any moment, "You're not a girl are you?"

"W-w-w-what?" He stuttered as the captain smiled wickedly "Why would you say something like that?"

"Because to get sick for three days every month" She said innocently, enjoying the blush on the boy's face. It felt nice to know even though he looked older than he was, and more matured than most men he have seen she could still tease him like a kid. "That sounds a lot like having a period."

"N-n-no!" Shinji felt the blood rush to his face, blushing more when he realized he was being teased. "I have a condition where I feel ill when the sun and moon are at a certain position that affects the earth's gravity." He explained, having practiced this lie with Ritsuko, "I feel better if I get fresh air, at night time helps the most. And I am boy!"

"I'm not so sure" Misato pouted "You'll have to prove it to me, just so I'm positive" She couldn't hold back her giggles when Shinji went bright red and walked off to his room grumbling something about being tired. "Welcome Home Shinji!" The captain laughed as she walked over to her calendar and began to mark down the days Shinji would have to stay home from school, missing completely that the three days of the month she circled were the days of the full moon every month.

Author's Note: If any reader is familiar with the TV show 'Being Human', this is NOT a crossover, just inspired by the basic story. I really hope I don't have to come out and say what kind of creepy critter that Shinji is. I bet you can guess what change I made to Asuka too.

I hope no one is too mad at me for changing their ages, it would have screwed with my story a little too much if they were younger. Hope you liked it.

Also be prepared for monthly updates. Two months if my life hit's the shit fan


	2. Chapter 2

BEING HUMAN

Chapter 2

Burden Of The Beast

Disclaimer: I don't own Evangelion.

"_I am a world before I am a man  
I was a creature before I could stand  
I will remember before I forget  
BEFORE I FORGET THAT!"_ Before I Forget- Slipknot

Tokyo-03 University

"Have you met the new guy? He's _really_ huge!"

"You think he's the pilot of that giant robot NERV built to fight the Angels?"

"He's kinda cute, do you think he left a girlfriend back home?"

"He must be the Pilot, no one would move here, they're all moving away."

"I hope he'll join the Basketball team, we could use a guy that big on our side."

"He looks fit, it must be pilot training!"

"Isn't he the same age as us? He looks almost three years older than me! And he has all that hair on his arms!"

"Oh. My. God! Did you see the size of his shoes? And his hands?"

There were certain times in his life that Shinji both hated and loved having 'enhanced' hearing. His first day in his new school could be listed as one of those days. And it was just as bad the following three weeks, every hushed whispers, every angry hiss, and even a few perverted giggles from some of the sempai, he could hear them all, every one of them always dragged his name into this once in awhile.

'_So much for normal'_ he thought most of the time.

But he was starting to get used to it. Hell, he had to, he would have to live with this 'condition' for not just a normal lifetime, but several after that. New born Werewolves: Freakiest growth spurt then the age process stops and time stands still forever at their prime or whatever he choose his age to be. So Shinji knew that he should at least try to enjoy his high school year. Maybe he'd live forever, but this is the last time he'd be a child.

"Excuse me Class Rep" Shinji smiled at the pigtailed girl, noticing how her cheeks colored slightly as he spoke at her, "I don't mean to be any trouble, but since I'm going to be gone for the next three days I was wondering if you wouldn't mind collecting my homework, if it isn't a problem, of course."

The girl swallowed hard before talking, failing to hide her blush "S-s-sure thing Ikari-san," she squeaked and shook her head to recomposed herself, "You can call me Hikari so you don't have to call me Class Rep all the time" she blushed deeper, obviously happy to help the new student.

"Sure, but I'll only call you Hikari if you call me Shinji, or Shinji-kun if you like," Shinji gave her his most charming smile, the one he had to practice in the mirror for hours before he was satisfied that it looked sincere and he looked absolutely _sparkly_. The result was as desired, the pigtailed girl went deep red, smiled shyly and then excused herself, walking away like she was walking on air.

Shinji let out a heavy sigh when Hikari left the class room. He had to put on this particular face for the masses c, putting on a fake smile, trying to be friendly, blending in with everyone else 'normal'. It was against how he was used to living, ever since the 'accident' he had started being a loner, generally keeping to himself to avoid being persecuted or misunderstood. But now he couldn't afford to live like that. He was bigger now, literally, and would still get bigger for a bit more, so people wouldn't be able to help but notice. If he kept his distance and stayed away with just himself, someone would notice and questions would shoot back and forth, the sort of questions that makes his life more 'troublesome' than what it already is. So to prevent his fellow students from finding out that on every month whenever the moon is at its fullest, he couldn't stop himself from growing fur and razor sharp fangs, but God bless him his sanity somehow remained intact.

Today wasn't that bad of a day though, he was genuinely happy because those 'three nights' will start the next day. _'Don't be confused, don't mess this up' _Shinji hated that fact he was a werewolf, it wasn't something that he had always wanted or dreamed about as a kid, but it did come with some perks that made it manageable. Running under the full moon unobstructed was one of them, the feel of the cold night air as it battered his soft fur, the soft dirt under his padded feet, the power and speed that coursed through his body with every move, making him feel invincible.

Under the Full Moon werewolves couldn't help but want to change, it was as if their bodies were in love with the moon, and wanted nothing more than to bask in her light. Mother Moon, the mother and goddess of the werewolves. _'God Bless the Moon…' _he thought most of the time as he looked at the moon.

In a way Shinji only hated being a werewolf because now he wasn't exactly what you call a 'Human'. He was something to be feared, a monster that could potentially kill and terrorize, sometimes he could feel himself slipping, becoming more animal than human, his sanity eroding in a few snippets of his thoughts and he would suddenly feel and control himself at the right moments. Those were the times when his anger, his boiling black rage, got the best of him, more than anything he want to prove his humanity, his fury was his bane, something he'd have to overcome in due time, to truly be called a human.

So Shinji _was_ having a good day at least, that is, until he heard the sound of feet stomping towards him, a raised heartbeat and smelled a nervous sweat. He turned around to see a boy raising his fist to strike him square in the face. The boy had black hair and was slightly shorter than him, which meant the boy was tall for his age. The boy threw his punch and was knocked off balance when Shinji took a step back and dodged sideways. As the 3rd Child dodged his attacker, he gave him a powerful knee strike knocking out the breathe out of him, and falling down face first into the ground gasping for air. With his strength he then grabbed the back of the boy's pants and flipped him like a flapjack and he landed on his back with another groan. The werewolf dropped his knee again to the boy's stomach and braced his arms at the boys chest, limiting movement with his weight and slowly choked his enemy.

"Why did you attack me?" Shinji growled, he tried to control himself as his muscles twitched a bit._ 'The boy was a bit… afraid?'_

"Gah ugh- your- cough- fault- cough- my- cough- sister!" The boy tried to wheeze out his words while Shinji's knee forces the air out of his lungs. The 3rd Child stood up, letting the boy get to his feet. The boy's body was tense, obviously thinking about attacking again. "You're the pilot of that damn robot, right?" the boy seethed as red flashed in his eyes, due to a mix of anger and humiliation for being brought down with one strike

.

Shinji's eyes narrowed, "Who are you? What does me being the pilot have anything to do with this?"

" Toji! My name is Toji!" the boy explained with as much loathing as he can muster. "It's your fault my sister was hurt in the Angel attack! If you had done your damn job right she wouldn't be in the hospital!" Toji stepped forward again and threw another punch. This time however his target didn't dodge the 3rd Child easily _caught_ the punch with his hand with a toothy grin. Toji let out a pained yelp as the other boy started to squeeze with great force.

"You know nothing" Shinji's voice growled at Toji as he fell to his knees. "You don't know what it's like, having to pilot that _abomination_, to have it claw at your mind, like it's trying to strangle you and make you do things you don't want to do," he increased his grip on the boy's fist while the memories of the fight surfaced from the corner of his mind where he managed to seal them. "No one told me what it would be like" he growled again as his one arm was more than sufficient to send Toji on his knees. "No one even told me why I was coming to this city, nor have I had training, and no clue about what I was and should be doing. I was given a choice Toji, to fight a giant god damn _monster_ in a giant robot I had no idea how to use, or sit back and let that thing kill us all."

Shinji looked down Toji, now kneeling in front of him, his face had a mixture of anger and fear. Shinji caught his own reflection in the boy's eye, his face was so twisted with rage it barely resembled a human's face. His lips were pulled back in a snarl, his eyes reflected wildness and it looked as if his sharp teeth were ready to bite into every bit of flesh that Toji has. The 3rd Child relinquished his hold and Toji finally held his almost crushed hand in his other one, the feelings in them slowly returning as time ticked by. "I'm sorry about your sister" he whispered just loud enough for Toji to hear him and turn to him.

"But if I hadn't fought that _Angel_ your sister wouldn't even be in the hospital," he walked away and did not turn his back again at the boy still clutching his hand, "… she would have been dead."

Walking through the hallway he spotted the Class Rep, "Hey Hikari-san, I'm _really_ not feeling well, I think I'll go home early, so could you please, pretty please explain to the teacher why I won't be in class?" The girl could only nod, it didn't surprise him, he was pretty sure that he still looked angry and he didn't look ok. It was better if he left school for now, in the state of mind that he was in right now, he knew it was dangerous for him to be around people. He couldn't be sure that he'd be able to keep control when he is this angry. He still felt the burning rage pulsing through his veins, demanding that his body go forth and rip out retribution out of whoever's skull was closer, limb from limb as he tried to indulge it a bit.

The journey home was calming. It always made Shinji feel better, walking alone that is, it helps him clear his head, most especially at night when the air is cooler. Though it was noon, he felt relieved and relaxed as he watched the humans do their life one minute at a time. By the time he reached the apartment he had all but forgotten about the fight with Toji. Misato wasn't home yet, he could not smell her lavender perfume, it tickles his olfactory glands a bit every single time he gets a whiff of it. So he didn't mind that he actually had the place to himself for a couple hours at least. Doing a quick look around the house, he saw a note on kitchen counter addressed to him.

_Dear Shin-Chan,_

_I know that you might not be feeling __well because tomorrow your 'supposed' to be sick, but you have a synch test tonight. And I still don't know why they couldn't do the test in the day like normal people, but there isn't much I can do about it. So don't make any plans to go anywhere before 8:00 pm. I'll be home then to pick you up, so you don't have worry about cooking for me. _

_Love__,_

_Misato_

The note was signed along with a red kiss mark, undoubtedly from the woman who just gave him her love.

Shinji ignored the distasteful nickname and smiled. He really didn't mind cooking for Misato, because her cooking could be used to kill off HIV and be used synthetically to kill _Angels _if that project would be funded. The tiny problem was she hadn't been prepared for how much _he_ could eat. Her mouth hit the floor the first time she saw him eat a meal that could have fed a family of four, and to make it less suspicious he just gave her his usual excuse that he was a growing boy.

It seemed to work, but Shinji couldn't help but think that Misato may have suspicions of her own, you don't get to be a Captain by being stupid that's a fact. And perhaps he should talk to Ritsuko about telling Misato about his secret, since she basically volunteered to take good care of him. One of the reasons however, why he hadn't told her yet was that he was very much afraid how she would react at the news. She had been so nice to him so far, albeit the usual teasing, and sometimes uncanny behavior to dress like no one is there at home, not including the time when he was surprised to see that stupid penguin upon which Misato found and _stared_ at him in all his glory.

If she ever found out he was monster, would she hate him, would she be afraid, would she tell him to get out of her apartment and leave him alone to serve under NERV without the support she had been giving him?

He didn't know if he could bear that thought, there was just too much rejection in his life that it hurts more than a few broken bones.

Ritsuko had been a big help, the Doctor had done a great job at keeping his secret and coming up with ways to help him with dealing with life as a werewolf in a city as big as this on. She had showed him a map for the perfect places for him to go when he had to change woods close to Tokyo-3 filled with deer and other animal that he could feed on when he was during his 'three day sickness'. Ritsuko also advised him that when he was synching with the Eva that he could now decompress his plug suit so that it wouldn't rip when he changed. It had almost worked the first time he tried it, the problem was that they both forgot about his bushy tail. The solution was a small slit in the bottom of the suit that wasn't visible when it was compressed, again thank god for that since he would have a sizable rip on his butt every time he would get in the plug suit, but when it wasn't compressed it was big enough for his tail to get through. Shinji appreciated all of the Doctor's help, but she wasn't like Misato who felt like a big sister to him.

Misato was more like family than his own father. Family. Nothing else mattered. She was family to him. Period.

His father, the Commander, since the Angel attack they had barely spoken two words to each other. What surprised him though was that it didn't really bother him, hell the man even brought out a part of Shinji that he didn't like, so slowly he was starting to realized he was better out without the old man in his life, he only aggravated him which makes his condition more worse than it is. He had people who looked after him anyway, and it felt extremely good, Misato and Ritsuko were there at his side. It was true that they're somewhat older and could only possibly be doing it because he piloted Unit 01, but they could have been like the Commander and left him alone by himself, in a half-finished dormitory of some sort that NERV funded. Instead they chose to help with his 'furry little problem' and keep him company, they had proven that he didn't need his Father,, he could survive without him just fine.

Shinji decided to watch TV until it was almost time dinner, After a couple hours of surfing the channels he came across a National Geographic documentary rerun about wolves. He enjoyed watching it until it showed a pack of wolves taking down a moose calf, which caused his stomach to growl fiercely, again. Forced to turn off the TV and feed himself by his hunger, he hastily prepared a meal for himself. After eating his fill he decided to listen to his SDAT player while he waited Misato to return home. At around 7:10 Misato's familiar scent graced him as she walked into the living room. He automatically removed his headphones with one look at Misato's face, she looked worried as a small frown graced her forehead.

"Section-2 reported that you were in a fight today at school" Misato crossed her arms as she spoke, trying to look stern. It didn't work, her face became soft in an instant, "Are you ok Shinji?"

Shinji sighed and stood up, "I'm fine" he said, failing at trying to keep the sad sound out of his voice. "Did you hear what the fight was about?" he received a nod from the purple haired woman. He looked at her, not knowing what exactly to say, "I got into the Eva because I thought I could help people," he sighed heavily as his shoulders sagged a bit "I thought 'If I kill the Angel, it means I'm a good person, that I helped people'" the 3rd Child looked down at the ground dejectedly, like a dog whipping itself with his own tail. "… but now I really don't know. Does the Eva even help people? Can I really save lives? Or is the Eva only good for killing _Angels_?" He asked not looking into her eyes and just focusing on the floor, not sure if he was asking Misato, or himself.

Suddenly he felt arms surround him in a hug, he looked up a bit to see Misato holding him close and her lavender scent soothing his emotions, "I know it feels wrong" she stroked his untidy hair, trying to comfort him as gentle as she can, "There isn't an easy answer to this, the horrible truth is that we are at _war_ with the _Angels_, and in war _everyone_ gets hurt. There's nothing we can do about it Shinji, and there is no real right or wrong with it," She lets go of him, stepped back and looked at him in the eyes as she smiled. "The only good that we can really do in war is save as many lives as we all can, and you can do your part by piloting the Evangelions and saving us."

Grey blue eyes became damped with tears, Misato was surprised when she was engulfed in the arms of the boy who was almost her own height. She felt the boy shake as he sobbed lightly at her shoulders, guilt gnawed at her heart. He was a young boy, he was on the threshold of being a young man and an old boy, a child who needed someone to care for him, and she was definitely using him as a soldier, an instrument to kill, hurt and destroy. At that moment, with Shinji crying softly on her shoulder, Misato decided that she wouldn't just be his commanding officer, she would be his family, in a world where she had lost her father and the Commander practically abandoning him to her, maybe, just maybe, together they could find comfort and strength to fight with each other as part of a family.

Now, now" she whispered as she lightly lifted his head up, "Dry those tears Shin-Chan, we have to get you to Ritsuko for those synch test she'll have you doing at this ridiculous hour of the night."

Shinji let go of her and wiped his tears before smiling at her, "You know Misato, I actually like doing them at night. I'm much more of a night time person than a day time person." He looked away shyly as he continued wiping his tears, "I'm sorry for crying, you shouldn't have to deal with my problems."

"Nonsense" Misato smiled, and then ruffled the boy's hair. "I don't mind helping you Shinji. We're in this together, like a family." She almost jumped back when the boy snapped his head towards her with wide eyes, continued after calming herself "I want to help you, so if you need it, just ask."

Shinji could only return her smile with his own, and for the first time in a long while, he had never felt this happy in his own skin.

_NERV HQ- Locker rooms_

Shinji pressed the button on his wrist to compress the plug suit, he was still not used to having the suit going from baggy to skin tight. His new suit when decompressed was bigger than it had been, so that it fit when he changed, even with his inhumane changes. The fingers and toes had been removed on the suit as well, so that his claws wouldn't rip through the suit, it had been so embarrassing on his part to have to change in front of Ritsuko so that she could take the measurements for the new plug suit. It felt comforting when she acted like it had been a perfectly normal thing, she had always made him feel less like a freak and more like a human being. He couldn't help but wonder if Misato could do the same thing if she knew of his predicaments. As soon as Shinji closed the door to his locker, he immediately noticed the not so subtle change in the temperature of the locker room. So much that he could almost see his breath frosting on front of him, he turned around and gasped.

Only a foot away stood the same girl he had seen just before the Angel attack. Her red eyes stared at him without any kind of expression at all. "You are Shinji Ikari, Pilot of Unit 01" The girl stated with a monotone voice.

"Y-yeah" Shinji could only stutter out as he stepped around the girl. As he did, his hand touched the girl's arm, and went through it, like it wasn't even there._ 'Great! Just great… I'm actually in front of the ghost.'_ He stopped and stared at the girl for a moment, watching as she flickered out of thin air then appeared a few meters away. He continued to stare for a while before he remembered what he knew about this girl.

"You're Rei" He said looking down shamefully "I forgot that you were a ghost. I'm really sorry, - I was- "

"Why?" The 1st Child asked as she looked back at him with those cold blood-red eyes. Shinji could only stare and blink his eyes in confusion. "Why are you sorry?" She clarified as her voice seemed soft and subtle in the human ear.

"I-I'm sorry that you d-died" Shinji explain, starting to wonder just how long this girl had been watching him.

"Why? You do not know me." Rei's voice was devoid of all emotion, like she was some robotic recording, or the same automated recording he heard on his first day at Tokyo-03. "Why would you be sorry when you had no involvement in my death?"

The boy gulped, obviously confused at the question "W-well, I-it's just that I feel bad that you are not, you know, a-alive and have flesh or something." It felt weird to explain what you were feeling in front of a ghost he thought as he groped for words.

"You do not need to feel anything towards my death. Even as I am now, I am able to be of some use. My control is improving and soon I will be able to pilot Unit 00"

Shinji now was officially '_creeped out'_ by the ghost of the 1st Child, well at least she answered his question about whether or not she would be able to pilot. But is as if she didn't care that she was dead. "Don't you even feel bad that you're dead?".

"No. I feel nothing, emotions are irrelevant," Rei answered and she turned her back on him but did not glide forward. "Do you feel bad that you are a werewolf?"

The blue eyed boy froze. How the hell did she knew about him? But then again, it hadn't been hard for him to tell that she was a ghost so maybe it was the same for her. "Yeah" he answered her question with a straight face, "I didn't want to be a werewolf. I was just a normal boy back then, I didn't know anything about ghosts, werewolves, or any other kind of monster. I had a pretty normal life before, but now I have the life of a werewolf."

"So the life of a normal person is better than the life of a werewolf?"

"I-I – I really don't know" Shinji stuttered, now that he thought about it, had his life been so great as a normal teenage boy? Could he really tell her that being a werewolf had made his life terrible, when it wasn't that great to begin with?

"Why did you come here?" He asked when he could give her a straight answer.

"I… do not know" Rei said and flickered once before disappearing completely. Shinji sighed when he looked at the clock. Ritsuko was definitely going to ask him what took him so long.

_In the entry Plug_

"**Stupid… freaking… blue hair****ed… red eyed… creepy ass ghost chick…" **Shinji grumbled under his breath. He ran a clawed hand over his hairy snout in frustration, he was bothered by what the ghost had said. He was bothered about it so bad that it was messing with his synchronization and he had to get _changed_ to get a decent synch rate.

"What was that Shin-Chan?" Misato asked from the control room.

"**Nothing Misato, just frustrated that I can't get a higher synch**** rate"** Shinji's filtered voice came back at her, he laid back and tried to relax so he could synch better. After a while he pushed the girl's face out of his mind along with her words.

"Shinji was in a fight at school, that's probably bothering him tonight" Misato said, turning to Ritsuko. She wasn't sure whether or not she wanted to tell her blond friend about what had been said at the apartment, in truth, it wasn't any of the Ritsuko's business anyway.

"I know, I read the report. Shinji can take care of himself in a fight, you don't have to worry about him" Ritsuko reassured her the young captain, she couldn't help but smile to herself. In a real fight if Shinji had to do it, he could easily rip off a grown man's leg and shove it so far up the said man's ass that he could lick his own toes, Misato didn't have to worry about the boy's safety.

"It's not the actual fight that has me worried" Misato confessed. "The boy's sister, the one that accosted him, was hurt during the Angel attack and I think Shinji blames himself for it, partly or in the whole I really don't know and can't gauge it."

Ritsuko sighed as she looks at the readings, "There isn't much we can do about it. In time he'll realize it wasn't his-" she was cut off by one of the computers beeping suddenly. "What the hell?" The blond yelled as she read the screen. "Damn it, It's a pattern blue, it's an Angel! Shinji, get ready for a fight! We're sending you up now!"

"I got it" Shinji responded, smiling to himself. He really just had a very bad day, he had a fight at school, a ghost appeared to him, he bawled like a kid in front of Misato, so he was very pissed right now, so the Angel was about to share his misery, by having its core shoved down it's throat or whatever appendage he could rip off today.

_In the Streets of Tokyo 3_

"_This is an Emergency Broadcast, Please go to the nearest shelter until otherwise told to by the proper authorities!"_

The announcement blared over the city.

"Damn, guess we better get going Kensuke" sighed Toji as his freckled friend lit up with excitement.

"Leave?" the boy gasped as he pushed his glasses up on his nose. "This is a chance of a lifetime to get some video footage of the Evangelion! We got to get up to the hills so we can get a great view from a safe distance!"

"I don't know Kensuke, it's awfully dangerous," Toji sighed again as he followed his friend, thinking that it was very unlikely that it would be safe when they were 50ft behemoth thrashing around their city like a pair of eels or something.

Someone should have definitely knocked on wood.

_Inside Unit 01_

"**Where is it**?" Shinji asked, squinting his eyes in vain, trying to get a glimpse of the Angel, searching the city's landscape for any speck that isn't even human. Preferably with something to grab on so could vent his anger over and over again at it.

"It isn't in the city yet, but it's already on its way though" Ritsuko said as she continued to look at the computer screen, taking in the readings. "You're synch rate is 73%, more than enough to take it down. We recently equipped the Eva with a weapon that should suit your wild fighting style. Flick each wrist down twice and Progressive blades will come at the back of the wrist"

Shinji looked down the arms of the Eva, noticing that the armor around the forearms was thicker than it was the last time he piloted the Eva. He flicked his wrists down twice and grinned as a blade the same length of the Eva's forearm shot out the back of each wrist. The Progressive Wrist Blades (PWB) shone devilishly in the light.

"**Awesome**" Shinji smirked as he thought of the damage he could do now with the PWBs.

"Our first plan was to give Unit 01 retractable claws like a cat, but we kept coming up with design flaws such as the flexibility and malleability, even the stress strength of the metal or alloy that we need to use, also it needs to be very tough to be able to take the progressive knife's heat" Ritsuko sighed again and admitted flatly, "So instead of imbedding it at the Eva's fingers, we decided to do it like that, be careful though. Those PWBs were not yet field tested so try to be gentle with them."

"**I like them**" Shinji took a few swipes at the empty space in front of him, getting a feel for his new weapons as his anxiousness build up, "**They feel… real good**"

"Well, aren't you just the picture perfect 'Wolverine'" Ritsuko teased with a small smile, her face became serious as she read the readings on the screen. "Get ready Shinji," Ritsuko nodded at Misato so she could take charge of the situation, "It's coming up on your right Shinji."

True to her word, the Angel appeared as soon as mentioned. This Angel was much different from the first one that Shinji fought, this one was more like a floating, legless red centipede, it's head is like a rounded arrow head with two whip like tentacles.

"**Um… is it just me**" Shinji struggled to keep himself composed as he started to notice what the Angel looked "… **or does it look like a giant-**"

"My my Shinji" Misato giggled as she teased her young charge "Here I was thinking how innocent you were. Shame on you, thinking such naughty thoughts at this time, maybe after we get home."

"**Um- I was going to say giant squid."**

The Captain cleared her throat as Ritsuko shook her head behind her, as her obvious teasing backfired, "Ehem! Alright Shinji, carve this Angel out a new digestive tract so we can go home."

"**Yes ma'am**" Shinji growled as he leapt forward. The Angel lashed out with its tentacles, missing Unit 01 by meters as the Eva rolled out of the way of the attack, he didn't miss the fact that the whips can cut through the buildings, concrete, metal the whole nine yards, behind him like a red hot knife through warm butter. Avoiding the deadly tentacles Shinji jumped as high as the Eva would let him, spun in the air then landed on the back of the Angel, penetrating the AT Field with the circular motion of his Eva's body.

"Shinji!" Misato yelled at his mad acrobats towards the Angel. "What are you doing? The S2 core is on the bottom of the Angel!"

"**I'm getting there**" Shinji snarled as he slashed into the flesh of the Angel with the PWBs. The blades cut deep and clean, pretty much like the progressive knife, but there were some parts that it merely got stuck, but with his strength he was making short work of the _Angel_. He was half way through the Angel's body when he felt an intense burning on his arm as the Angel grabbed him with its tentacles and flung him towards the hills. He lost his balance as the other tentacle indiscriminately slapping every part of him it can reach him with left and right, as he landed on his back creating a small quake and destroying the stairs towards the temple on the side of the hill, a red blinking signal made him turn his head and saw that he had barely 5minutes left before the Eva died out on him.

"**Son-of-a-Bitch!**" Shinji growled as he pushed the Eva up into a sitting position. Before he could get up to attack again, Shinji immediately noticed two figures on the ground beside him and almost crushing one of them with his palm. He immediately recognized the boy who had attacked him at school, god damn, it really was Toji! The other boy was unknown to him, with the frightened eyes behind the circle spectacles, but it seemed like the boy was trying to help Toji up. Shinji could tell with one look that the boy's leg was broken probably when they scrambled away from where he landed.

'_God damn it! You really are a pain- ' _if Shinji tried to move they would be crushed. **"Shit!"**

"Shinji!" Misato's voice was strained as she weighed the options on her mind, "We don't have a choice right now, you're going to have to let them inside the Eva-"

"He can't" Ritsuko cuts her off, she felt nervous regarding this development, not only will the integrity of the train of thought for Shinji would be compromised, the 3rd Child himself will be compromised and she could not let it happen, "If he lets them in the entry plug, the synch rate will plummet and even dig a hole in the ground to hide. The 3rd Child will have too much trouble moving the Eva, and there's no way he'd be able to fight it. He can't let them in, he only has one choice at this point Captain and you know it!"

Misato's eyes widened as she realized what Ritsuko was getting at. "Shinji" she said weakly trying to steel herself at the order, "You will need to fall back to the back-up umbilical cord, you must continue to fight."

"**I can't!**" Shinji snapped as the Angel whipped him over and over again, his layers of armor slowly, but surely melting in the assault it was receiving. "**If I move just for a bit away from here they'll be killed by the Angel!**"

"We know" Misato said in a dead voice "This is war Shinji, and we need to make sacrifices to win it do you understand? You have your ord-"

"**I'm not going to kill them!**" Shinji growled and shouted at the same time over the intercom "**What's the point of winning this war when we lose what we are fighting for in the first place because of our own choices?**"

Just as Misato was about to answer back the Angel attacked again, it's tentacles whipping out towards Unit 01. She was shocked into silence as the Eva caught both tentacles with one hand in perfect precision, "**I've had about enough of you!**" Shinji snarled as he yanked on the tentacles as hard as he could, pulling the Angel towards the Eva. Before the Angel could crash into the Eva, Unit 01 thrust it's other hand forward, driving the Progressive Wrist Blade through the Angel's core shattering it instantly. Shinji knew the time would come so he carefully bent over the humans cowering and expanded his AT Field at full power draining half of his now almost depleted energy source, the Angel surprisingly did not blow up, but spurted enough blood to cover the small hill blood red and taints it surrounding in a sea of blood.

"**It's not winning if we lose our humanity**" Shinji whispered as the Unit's power ran out, making the unit go limp. He would fight this war, but it should always be on his own terms. He knew that Misato was going to tear him a new one, but he didn't care. He would always remember this day as proof that he was still human, defying orders that would make him even less so than what he is right now, at least maybe at least half-human now.

_NERV- Locker room_

"What the hell were you thinking?" Misato screamed, putting her hands on her hips and glaring down at the young Eva pilot sitting on the bench. "You disobeyed my direct order."

"I didn't have enough time to obey your order" Shinji snarled and he remembered he was talking to his sister, but then he returned the Captain's glare back at her, "What does it matter Misato? I killed the Angel, that's what matters, right?"

"What matters is that you listen to your commanding officer," Misato hissed angrily through clenched teeth and she shook her head, evidently disapproving of what he did, "Lives of innocent people depend on how well you listen to orders."

"Innocent people? Innocent people you say?" the 3rd Child stood up to come and level with his guardian. "Innocent people like the two kids… _kids_,_ like me Misato,_ that you pretty much told me to kill so I could retreat?" Shinji turned away from the tactician in disgust. "Do you even care of their lives? Does a human life even have value to you? Or is it always about killing Angels?"

The sound of flesh hitting flesh rang through the locker room as Misato slapped the blue eyed pilot across the cheek. "I've had just about enough of your attitude" she sneered down at him, "You think you're the only one who's involved in this just because you pilot Unit 01? Who directs the operations? Who maintains your Eva? Who in the world even fixes your Eva so its always in top shape? This falls on the shoulders of all of us, so stop acting like a spoiled brat. If you can't listen to orders then leave, we will find another pilot just like you."

Shinji gently touch his red cheek, before turning and walking away from Misato.

" Fine, you don't know what it's like to pilot Misato, so I guess I shouldn't even bother" he said quietly without stopping heading for the doorway. "Tell Ritsuko I said goodbye and thank you. And tell my father he has to find another pilot."

To be continued

_Author's notes: Sorry that his took some long, my computer died, like dead-dead, and I had to wait to prober computer. I hope you like this chapter._


	3. Chapter 3

**BEING HUMAN**

**Chapter3**

**There Is No Voice That Can Be Heard If No One Listens**

**Disclaimer: I do**** not own Evangelion.**

"_When my fist clenches, crack it open  
Before I use it and lose my cool  
When I smile, tell me some bad news  
Before I laugh and act like a fool"_

Behind Blue Eyes - The Who

Geofront

"I have read your report Captain, but I would like to hear it in your own words," Commander Ikari sat with his hands folded and stared coldly at the woman from behind his desk. "Now, I want you to explain to me _why_ the Third Child is currently missing."

"W-well, you see sir," Misato gulped as she began to sweat at the Commander's unnerving gaze, it felt like she was naked in front of him whenever he wanted to "Pilot Ikari and myself had an argument after he disobeyed my order to retreat and-"

"I know all about the battle Captain, spare me the details," The Commander cut her off and intensified her gaze, "What made you think it would be a good idea to _scold_ the Third Child for his actions that were, correct me if I'm wrong, satisfactory?"

"I-I thought…" Misato stuttered looking for words, Gendo could really make you feel insignificant whenever he is obviously displeased with you, "I thought t-that it was the proper procedure for soldiers-"

"It seems that you obviously fail to grasp something that is particularly very simple Captain Katsuragi," The Commander glared over his folded hands as he felt the nervous woman shiver as he said her last name with as much contempt as he could muster, "The 3rd Child's average synchronization ratio is only two points, let me repeat, two points lower than the 2nd Child's average, even with her recent higher scores."

He let the statement hang for another minute as Misato fidgeted a bit in front of him, "Captain, finding another candidate with his skill and potential at this time is near impossible, so it falls on you, and you alone to keep him here working with us," Gendo straightened up and his glasses turned opaque from an unseen light reflected from them, "NERV does not require officers who _lack_ the _skill_ to _fulfill _their duties," putting emphasis on the exact three words.

Misato paled as she grasped the meaning of what the Commander was saying, her duty was to keep Shinji piloting Unit 01 and to look after the boy, and she had failed on both counts because of his departure.

"Worst yet the pilot is gone when he is most vulnerable due to his _sickness_," The Commander continued relentlessly, "I want the 3rd Child back under your care within the next three days. If he is not at NERV within the that time, you shall not be here either, do you understand that Captain Katsuragi?"

"Yes sir!" Misato saluted before taking her leave, Gendo Ikari lets out a frustrated sigh as soon as the Captain stepped outside of his office and the door slid shut on their own.

"You almost made it sound like you were worried about your son for a moment there" Fuyutsuki said with a knowing grin. The older man stood hidden in the corner while Misato was being scolded, the poor woman never even noticed that he was there, watching every move of her shoulders, every uneasy glazing of her eyes, even every breath she took as she received the full brunt of Commander Ikari's reprimand, but then again, when he didn't want to be seen, it was very easy for him to blend in into his surroundings. It was a trait that was common with people like him, along with thousands of other neat little _tricks._

A frown cracked the Commander's face, "Can you find him?" Gendo asked, ignoring the Vice-Commander's earlier comment.

"I already have," Fuyutsuki smiled, producing a rolled up paper map of Tokyo 3 out of nowhere as smoke wisped out of one end slightly, "But you know that Section-2 can't bring him back unless he wants to come back. They are obviously ill-equipped for the task if you ask me."

"What do you suggest we do then?"

"The boy has a strong connection with Captain Katsuragi, their wave lengths are very similar." Fuyutsuki explained as he put the map back into his chest pocket, "I believe that she can bring him back, I'll simply make a '_suggestion_' to Dr. Akagi, so that the good Doctor will give her friend the right advise, and then I can make a '_suggestion_' on where the boy may be found. Problem solved." The Vice-Commander pulled out a small white stone with the Kanji symbol for _'sight' _written on it, "I'll give Shinji a day or two for himself so he can enjoy the full moon alone, of course."

Gendo nodded his approval. "Make it so," he ordered gruffly, he actually didn't like using the Fuyutsuki's _'other talents'_, but they did have their uses.

"As you wish" The grey haired man gave one last smile before fading into nothingness.

Gendo Ikari looked up at the ceiling, then grumbled underneath his breath. "Wizards."

_Woods o__utside Tokyo-3_

The night was brightly lit by the light of the full moon, the stars accompanying it in full force without the obstructions of the artificial lights of the humans. Moonlight shone through the leaves of the forest, illuminating every path and passage almost invisible to the naked eye, but to Shinji's eyes, the night was as bright as day, better even. Under the sun's rays he felt unnaturally naked, bare, like everyone could see inside of him, see what he really was, the dark, vile, and evil creature that should be feared and have been the perception for his kind. But at night he didn't have to worry about all of those things, he belonged in the night, and the night embraced him as one of its kind, and all the other freaks, too afraid to show their real faces in the light, afraid to be hated, afraid to be feared, while in the dark they didn't have to hide, in the dark they were welcomed, in the dark they were normal, in the dark they were powerful, and for that Shinji loved the night, but most of all he loved the moon, and how it made him feel… _invincible._

Oh how it felt so good, to have its bewitching light bathe his body. Oh how he loved the feel of dirt and earth underneath his feet, the wind ravaging his furry body, his powerful blood pumped through his veins, allowing him to run faster than the human eye could even see. When he thought about it, he figured it was his blood that was the source of his power, than in the moon, while under the moon's gaze it felt like lava replaced his blood, under the moonlight he became a living machine that ran under the rays of a heavenly deity.

'_Run'_ Shinji thought, pushing his legs harder as he sprinted through the woods, dodging trees and bush. '_Run until it stops hurting! Run until you forget what you are, what you want to be, and forget what you can never be again!'_ Shinji told himself, desperate for an answer, a reason, anything, aside from this feeling that he have in his heart.

He felt empty, like something was missing and he had no idea what it was, he was lost again in his mind, confused on what he really was meant to do. He was an animal, a beast, and yet he had a chance to do something to prove he could be a human being again, but then again that was just a lie. He had piloted the Evangelion so he could lie to himself, saying he was human by saving humans, and that he was happy to do it. But in the end, he was just another monster for them, killing other monsters and hurting innocent people where he had no hand into it.

Just once, when he tried to do the right thing, to protect a human life, even if that human hated him for piloting, he ended up being yelled at by the person he was beginning to respect. And just like that, with a snap of a finger, he saw what was the Evangelion was really about.

Death.

A familiar scent broke him out of his thoughts, he skidded to a halt and took a deep sniff of air. He recognized it as the scent of the boy who had hung around Toji, _'What was his name? _ the other boy that he had saved during his fight with the Angel. Shinji was about to continue running but couldn't seem to move, '_Does he hate me too?'_ Shinji wondered as he contemplated on the situation.

Deciding that he wanted to know what he was thinking, Shinji changed back into his human form. The baggy jeans he had been wearing fell down to his ankles, along with the bag of clothing he had tied around his waist. He hastily changed into a simple outfit before running off into the direction of the 'other boy's' scent. It didn't take long for the 3rd Child to find the boy. He was however a little surprised to see what the boy actually was doing, the sandy blonde boy was sitting around a camp fire, dressed up like a soldier. Shinji walked up silently towards the boy, only letting the boy know he was there when he was ten feet away, "Mind if I join you?" Shinji asked with a small uneasy smile he had been practicing in the mirror for a long time.

Kensuke looked up, startled, with his mouth agape, after blinking stupidly a couple of times he returned the Eva pilot's smile and beckoned for him to sit down. As the 3rd Child sat down he offered him an IMP (AN#1), but he politely refused, saying that he had eaten already. After sitting around the fire for a while in silence Kensuke finally spoke up, his voice shaking a little, "Thank you for saving us," he said and bowing his head as Shinji turned to him.

His eye widened at the gesture, he wasn't expecting a thank you. "Why?" he asked clueless, like being blind-sided with a punch. Seeing Kensuke's puzzled look at his question he continued, "Why are you even thanking me? You almost died because of me, they told me to get up and attack. If I had done that you would have been crushed. And I almost did that!" Shinji looked away in shame, but a small shimmer of gratitude and a sense of pride swelled in him.

"Yeah, but you didn't, did you? You obviously disobeyed a direct order Ikari," Kensuke grinned happily, seeing that he wasn't saying anything, he plowed ahead, "You know what, even Toji's grateful towards you for saving our lives. Hell, you could have just let us die, stood up and let that Angel fire those weapons of his, it might have been the logical thing to do as a soldier, but you didn't Ikari. You made a choice and it kept us, all of us in Tokyo-3 alive." He reached over and placed a hand on the taller boy's shoulder, making Shinji look him in the eye, "That's why I am saying thank you."

The werewolf's cheeks blushed at this, for the first time he couldn't help but smile at Kensuke, he was happy that there was actually someone who he had helped with the Evangelion that thanked him for what he did. Maybe the Eva wasn't just about death, maybe it could be used as a tool to protect people, just like a sword. It's used as an instrument to kill, but it can also act as a shield at the same time, maybe he can use Eva as a shield to save humanity. He watched the fire contently the two young men letting the silence unchecked this time, letting their thoughts wander.

Just then, a stomach growled, _'All that running made me hungry' _, "Hey Kensuke, got one of those IMPs with a steak or something that has a stew in them?"

_NERV- Command bridge _

"I AM SO SCREWED!" Misato's scream could be heard through all of NERV HQ, well within their floor at least. Imagine how Ritsuko felt sitting next to her, "I think I need to get my ears checked," she mumbled as she shook her head, trying to remove the cobwebs of the scream, "Why yes Misato, I do think it would be fun to go through the rest of my life unable to hear out of that ear" her friend looked at her and grunted sarcastically.

"Sorry" Misato smiled sheepishly before looking down at her feet. "It's just if I don't find this kid in the next three days I'm really screwed."

"The finding part isn't going to be your major problem in this."

"What do you mean by that?" Misato asked, fixing her friend with a confused look

The faux-blonde doctor continued "All right, sure, let's say you find him, then what happens?" Ritsuko looked at her friend straight into the eye, "He ran away for a reason, he doesn't want to pilot the Eva. So what are you going to do to make him pilot again? Put a gun to his head? Say that if he doesn't pilot you'll kill him? I'm sure that that'll work," irony evident with every statement.

"What do you think I should do then huh?" Misato snapped at her, she watched Ritsuko's face went blank and a dull light seemed to flash through her eyes. She was about to ask what was wrong when the doctor continued, as if she never paused at all.

"Looking for him isn't going to be enough, you have to be ready to talk to him, not order him, that'll just backfire at you," Ritsuko explained casually, "Talk to him, let him know how important it is he comes back to pilot. But don't talk to him like you're his commanding officer, or a drill sergeant at boot camp, that won't work because he isn't a soldier."

The doctor paused and took a sip of coffee, "He's a sixteen year old kid in an extraordinary situation and he obviously doesn't know how to deal with it. Try to understand what he's going through. Be there for him at least, offer him help instead of the bitching you gave him awhile ago."

"You really had to rub it in huh?" Misato sat in her chair in silence before sighing, "I think you're right."

"Of course I am" Ritsuko smiled triumphantly, nothing like knocking some sense into your friend, "so since you look like you may have a chance to bring him back, I advise checking the woods around the city"

"What? Why?"

"Well…" Misato's friend mused at her, "1st of all, since yesterday was the first day of the three days he's ill he wouldn't try to move too far away. 2nd, staying in the woods would keep him hidden from Section-2 as well and if I were you that's where I would check first."

"My god! You're absolutely right!" Misato shouted as she jumped up out of her chair grabbing her bag, gun, and files, "Don't worry Rits! I'll be back with our wayward Shin-Chan in no time!" Misato declared as she ran off excitedly into the hallway going to the parking area.

"Oh dear…" Ritsuko sighed as she remembered her friend's sense of direction, "She's going to get lost again…"

In a corner, hidden under a _veil_ a gray haired old man chuckled, '_As long as the Captain finds the boy while she's lost, that's all that matters,' _Fuyutsuki smiled and vanished into thin air.

_Woods outside Tokyo 3- last night of the full moon_

After spending the night at Kensuke's Camp, the 3rd Child said his goodbye and left him to be alone in his wandering. It was something he was used to, something he both craved and hated, there were times when he wished there was someone, at least, someone who would understand him, someone who that could run beside him under the beautiful light of the moon, someone that can be with him. But there were times, when the sun shone brightly in the sky, especially at midday, oh how he hated the blinding light like that he couldn't hide in, those were the times he wished he could be alone, away from the judging eyes of those that could never understand him, even a sliver of his situation.

So he now wandered underneath the shade of the forest, reveling in the dark comfort they gave him and waiting for the sun to set. He was deep in thought as he walked the woods, this was the last night of the full moon, it meant that in the morning he'd have to leave the forest, and leave Tokyo-03 for good. Meeting Kensuke had cause much more confusion within Shinji. It was very simple at first when he decided to leave, wait until the last full moon and then go back, go back where ever he came from.

But now he was having second thoughts about leaving.

His whole reasoning for leaving had been that Eva could only hurt people, like it had Toji's sister. Well, that was what he was telling himself. Deep down he knew better though, he was angry, hurt and afraid. He had trusted Misato like a family, like a pack, and she had ordered him to abandon those boys to die. It was that fact that had shattered his image of Misato. If she could so easily condemn two children to their deaths, was he really on the right side? Wasn't it like World War II again?

Misato had been so kind to him, like a big sister, or a female family he never once knew or appreciated. But now it seemed like it was all a fake, just for show so that he'd shut up and be a good little soldier for her. Did he even mean anything to her at least? Aside from being the designated pilot of Unit 01, was he ever only important to her as the pilot of Unit 01? He didn't exactly know the answers, and they were driving him insane and close to the brink of transforming again.

He was so lost in his thoughts that he almost missed the sound of a voice calling his name, freezing in mid step Shinji concentrated his hearing on the sound. "Shinji!" more like a full-blown racket to me, its Misato's voice echoing faintly through the forest.

'_What should I do?' _Shinji thought as he started to panic, not knowing how to confront or face her, '_Why did she come here anyway? It was really more simple back then… __Do I go to her then? She'll just try get me to pilot again. But what do I want? Do I want to go back? To NERV? To my… Father?' _Shinji quickly took off running in the direction of Misato's voice.

Just behind a hill lined with trees he soon found her, screaming at the top of her lungs, in a small meadow on the outskirts of the forest. He watched her for a few minutes hidden behind a tree before stepping out and leaning against the tree.

"Can I help you?" Shinji asked calmly.

"Waaaaaaaaaaah!" Misato screamed as she jumped four feet off the ground, when she returned back to the earth she spun around to face her young charge, the one who ran away from her yesterday.

"Shinji!" she gasped unbelieving he was actually here, "I've been looking everywhere for you!" she smiled walking towards the boy.

"Well, you found me… so, um, w-what do you want?" Shinji cursed himself silently for fumbling for the right words. He was confused, nervous, and a little afraid. Misato was someone he had let get close to him, something he hadn't done with a human since he could remember. Now he was so uncomfortable it scared him. He was mad at her, yet he understood why she had ordered him to abandon Kensuke and Toji. But he couldn't agree with her. Now he was most likely going to fight with her about EVA again and a sinking gut feeling made him weak inside. He didn't like it one bit.

"I just want to talk" She said raising her hands as a sign that she came in peace. She sat down on a tree that had fallen over long before and patted the spot next to her, indicating that she wanted him to sit next to her.

Shinji reluctantly sat next to her, a bit surprised about how she was acting. "So, uh, what do you want to talk about?" he asked as he tried to get comfortable to no avail.

"Why do you hate the Evangelion?"

Shinji's eye widened at the question, he looked Misato straight in the eye and saw how serious she was. He took a deep breath before starting, "At first I was afraid, I mean, you saw what the Angel did, all the attacks it took without a scratch. It was the most terrifying thing I've ever seen. And my… F-Father told me to fight it, and kill it! I'm 16! I could have been killed easily, and he didn't even care! How was a kid who has never really been in a fight suppose to kill something that could destroy cities huh?"

"Why did you really get in the Eva?" Misato asked patiently.

"I got in because I _hate_ my Father" Shinji sighed as he emphasized the word, "It's hard to explain to you Misato, I felt like I had to prove him wrong. Prove that the son he abandoned was a son worth having, I can't describe how I hate him. I don't feel like calling him names or thinking down on him. I have this rage inside me that makes me want to rip out his spine and carve out his heart with it. I know I shouldn't think that way about my father, but then I think _'this man left me'_ and something just snaps, and I have no control. I got in because I wanted to show… m-myself that I was in control, that I was the master of my own self."

"But that's not the worst of the Eva" the 3rd Child continued, "No it really isn't that, the worst part _is_ the EVA, Misato" he whispered looking her in the eye a little haughty than before, "there is something seriously wrong with those things. It's alive, like it's human, only it's really not one. When I'm in it I feel wrong, I feel like I'm in the worst possible place. I can't jump, I can't run, and can't even hide. I'm trapped, imprisoned in there. And then I can feel _it_ when I synch, I feel the EVA trying to get at me, in my mind, trying to break me…"

What Shinji didn't say was every time he felt the EVA scratch at his mind, the _beast_ inside him tore right back. That was another thing that bothered him, the _beast _was the part of himself that he despised the most. He was himself, the human part, then there was the wolf, which was his instincts and animal desire, the part of himself that made him wild and free. And then there was the _beast._ It was everything that humanity had to fear. It was Hate, Rage and Malice and everything that was described as black in a person's soul. It wanted nothing more than to rip, tear and devour. It was what the stories that kept children up at night were made of, it was the _**monster**_ inside of him. And it was the one thing that kept the presence of the EVA out of his mind. What really had him thinking was, if the monster inside him was protecting him, how evil was that thing it was protecting him from.

"Shinji" Misato whispered calmly after a few minutes of silence, chipping away the barriers he made inside of himself, "I'm here for you, if you need someone there for you to talk to-"

"No!" Shinji cut her off, "Not that I don't want to, I want to, god, I really do. I wish I could tell you all the things that have me so confused, but I can't. There are things about me that I just _can't _talk to other people about. I can't tell you, or the kids at school or anyone. Damn, I'm so tired of pretending too! I smile and I laugh when I should, but I don't want to. I put on a fake smile so I fit in, so people don't get suspicious, so they think I'm just like them. I'm not though, and it kills me to pretend all the time."

Shinji got off the tree and turned his back to Misato, "I know you want me to pilot the EVA, but I can't think of a good enough reason to, I just want to leave and never look back."

"Shinji" Misato stood up and place a hand on his shoulder, "I can't force you to do anything that you don't want to do. But I can tell you what will happen if you don't pilot the EVA. If the Angels win, it's all over for us. _Everything_ will die, you, me, Pen-Pen, everyone will die. We don't have a choice right now, you're all we've got. I know it's not fair, it really isn't, and I really wish I didn't have to ask you to do this"

She turned Shinji around so she look him in the eye, "I have to ask you to make the hard choice now, to make the choice I don't even think your father could make. I have to ask you to be selfless, to fight a fight you shouldn't have to. Be a better man than your father could ever be. Focus that anger onto the Angels who've put us all in this situation. You need someone to hit, hit them and hit them hard. I'm sorry for asking you to do this, but will you pilot the EVA again?"

Shinji just stared back into her pleading eyes for awhile, '_What choice do I really have?'_ he thought to himself, "Y-yes" he answered her finally with a sigh. "Is it alright if I come home tonight after a bit? I still need a bit of time to clear my head ."

Misato bit her lip but didn't say anything, she wasn't sure if he'd actually come home if she let him leave her sight right now. She realized though that she had to start trusting him right now, and getting him to trust her for life.

"Sure" she said finally relenting, "Just come home safe ok?"

Shinji smiled before turning around and running off into the woods to enjoy the last full moon of that month leaving Misato to go back to the trail where she came from.

_Misato's Apartment- 2 months later_

That night the 3rd Child did return, looking very much refreshed and at peace with himself, he also returned to school the next day and was confronted by Kensuke and Toji. The latter had tried to get Shinji to punch him, as an apology for attacking him, he only responded with a smile and saying, "I already kicked your ass once already, it wouldn't be fair if I did it again."

"You had to rub it in huh?"

"Yeah, I think I have to," they both smiled and he playfully hit Toji in the upper arm, no harm done.

That had been the start on one of Shinji first friendships, sure it wasn't perfect, friendships never are, but it was enough for him. He enjoyed talking to the two boys, and going to the arcade as well, they made him feel more like a normal kid than a werewolf cub, which was what he wanted, at least for a bit when he was with them.

The last Angel attack had been as interesting as the others, floating diamond that looked harmless, but it was a bit more trickier than the ones before it. The damn thing had nearly fried him the first time he was deployed, thank god he recovered in a few hours due to his _condition_ and was ready for payback. The 1st Child had gained enough control to join him on the attack, but wasn't really needed when he shot down the Angel with the Pulse Synchrotron Rifle on the first try. Of course, with his heightened senses he was able to make the shot easily on the first try.

Rei had been… well, Rei. Cold, emotionless, did I say cold already?

She was still creeping him out a bit, but he was starting to look at her as more of a comrade and a friend, aside of course, from being ectoplasm in nature. At first it really bothered him on how his father showed her much more interest than him, but he soon put in behind him, deciding it was simpler to ignore the Commander in more ways than one.

All in all the last two months had passed by quickly, this day would have been just like any other day if it hadn't been for Misato suddenly storming into the apartment, waking Shinji from his very nice nap that he was having on the couch, mind you he was running the other night, "Shinji! You have to see this!" she yelled at him as she started to half-drag and half-shake him awake and out of the apartment.

When they reached the outside of their building he saw in the parking lot what had gotten Misato so excited she was flustered all over. Sitting there pretty, with a pearlescent black finish and with a soft top, was a 1979 Pontiac GTO. Shinji's eyes gave a quick all-over and caught sight of a note underneath the windshield wiper.

_To: Ikari Shinji_ it read, _From: Roy McCaster_. He smiled instantly as he picked up the letter by the edge and started to read.

_Dear __Little Pup,_

_I've heard about what you've been up to and I just wanted to say that I couldn't be prouder to know that you come from my pack. You've done__ exceptionally well, and I wish you the best, I believe in you boy._

_T__his is a little gift from all of us (okay, mostly me) as a way to say congratulations on surviving this long, keep it up lad!_

_Yours Truly__,_

_Roy McCaster_

Shinji couldn't help but grin wolfishly. His own car, and it was a god damn classic!

"Shinji" Misato's voice broke him out of his daze, unable to peel her eyes off the muscle car, "What is this all about?"

"Just a gift from a friend back from where I used to live" Shinji smiled happily and gave the car another all-over and settled his sights on the front grills, the round side mirrors, the classic white side wheels with matching classic mags.

"Just a gift? This is a gift?" Misato said with mixed emotion, "Do you even have a license?" Shinji nodded at her and she finally approached the car, "Shin-Chan, this is a 1979 Pontiac, my god in heaven, GTO! They stopped making these monsters years ago!" She popped the hood to look under it and her mouth watered. "Oh my god, and it has the original chromed V8 engines too? Complete with turbo charger! Thank, god there's no NOS, this thing is more of a rocket ship than a car! This thing must have cost at least half a million (AN#2). What did the letter say?"

"He- He said that he was proud of me" Shinji wiped a single tear that made its way into his eye, "I kinda wish I could hear that from my father, but I guess Roy will have to do." But truthfully, Roy had been more a father to him than the Commander had been, Roy was the father of his _new_ life, and Shinji was thankful for it, even with its black spots of course.

"Aww… Come here Shin-Chan, you big sissy!" Misato gave a sob and hugged her young charge, "You don't think that maybe I could take it for a little spin?" She asked and pouted when the boy shook his head.

"Not until I take it out first Misato," which obviously cheered her up.

"Hey miss Katsuragi!" another cheerful voice called, the two turned their heads to see Toji and Kensuke walking towards them, "Can we get a hug too?" they both said excitedly, Misato giggled and shook her head before letting Shinji go.

"Wow!" Kensuke whistled in appreciation, "Who's car is this?" both his and Toji's jaw dropped when Shinji pointed to himself. "Whoa! No shit? Awesome!"

"Sure is," The 3rd Child smiled as he spun the keys around his finger, "You guys want to go for a ride?"

"Do we want to go for a ride? Hell yeah we want to!" Toji cheered as the three boys climbed to the car, Shinji puts in the ignition and turned it, the car roared to life, it engine growling at the massive torque it was suppressing. He flicked the radio on, which started to play '_Fortunate Son_' by Creedence Clearwater Revival.

"Aww…" Toji whined at the voice of Mr. Fogerty, "American classic rock?"

"House rules boys" Shinji grinned at them as CCR played their music, "Driver picks the music, shotgun shuts his cakehole," he rolled down his window and turned to Misato, "We'll be back in a few hours" he said as he drove off. The smile never faded from his face.

' _I believe in you boy' _ had been Roy's words. If Roy believed in him, then Shinji would never let him down.

_Over The Rainbow- somewhere in the ocean_

Kaji leaned against the ship's railing smoking a red filter in silence, he almost dropped his smoke when he felt two cold slender arms embrace him from behind.

"Asuka" Kaji sighed heavily, exhaling the smoke through his nose. "Have you _fed_ yourself yet?"

"Nah-uh, not yet…" A young girl's voice answered him from behind, "I don't want to feed off from any of these dirty old sailors. You know that I want you Kaji" one the girl's hands started to slide up and down the man's chest erotically, "Just a little nibble and then we can undress each other and- ahh!"

Asuka hissed as she felt something burn the hand she had been rubbing up and down his chest. She looked at Kaji to see him holding a small cross in his hand, "Hey! Why did you do that?"

"Well Asuka" Kaji smiled at her charmingly with his roguish and unshaved grin, "You're a lot stronger than me, so a weak guy like me has to use what he can to let a girl like you know that 'no' means 'hell no" his face turned stony-serious, "You should go glamour one of the crew so you can _feed_ before dawn."

Asuka turned away with a huff, her hair waving in the night air, she stopped at a door way to turn her head slightly to look over her shoulder, her eyes fixed on him as it almost glowed in the semi-darkness, "You hate Vampires, don't you?" she asked in a small voice, almost in a whisper.

Kaji sighed and took another drag of his smoke, finishing it off, flicking it towards the ocean. It was really sad, that this young girl had this terrible curse forced upon her. The man always knew that the girl didn't ask for this to happen, and it wasn't fair to judge her for something she had no control of whatsoever, but he couldn't help it.

After what they did to him, to his friends and his comrades, he could never forgive the _blood suckers,_ "Yes, I do," he whispered honestly.

Asuka's eye widened with shock, Kaji was able to see a single tear fall off the ivory white skin before the girl vanished inside the darkness of the ship. He sighed again before pulling out a cigarette, placing it in his lips and lifted two fingers to the end, a small flame appeared and he inhaled, lighting another one of his red filters. He exhaled through his nose one more time, "It's going to be one Hell of a Ride."

**To be continued…**

AN#1: IMPs are packets that serve as meals for Soldiers, and they are nasty! Beans and wieners are the only good ones, that and the stew ones, because they come with this awesome Maple desert, and it tastes amazing!

AN#2 I'm not going to try and figure out Japanese money, lets all just say that after second Impact The whole world changed their currency to the Canadian Dollar. That's right people, all hail to the Looney!

I'm sorry that I haven't posted a chapter in a while. My computer died, I've been depressed, my life all together sucks. More reviews will get me in the mood to write.

I need an idea. What kind of creepy critter should I write about?


	4. Chapter 4

**BEING HUMAN**

**Chapter Four:**

**Learning To Breathe**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Evangelion**

"Some people think you have a problem  
But that problem lies only with them  
Just 'cause you are not like the others

"

Beautiful Freak- Eels

"Is there any special reason that you are in my car?" Shinji asked as he continued driving down the street, turning to look at the blue haired girl now sitting on his passenger seat. It was easier now for the 1st Child to be out in public now, since she had learned enough control to stop 'flickering' in and out of existence every time she would show herself in the material world.

"Do I bother you that much?" Rei asked, answering a question with a question, thus giving him no real answer and more confusion on his already muddled mind.

Shinji kept silent for a few moments as he thought of a quick response, it made him uncomfortable, having her around. The hairs on the back of his neck constantly stood on end when he was in her presence, it was like having a creepy feeling or like someone is constantly staring at you. Plus, she had no scent, no body warmth, no real substance, and she constantly made his watch stop.

He decided to lie for now, "No, not that much…"

It was the 1st Child's turn to not respond for a while, "You seem bothered since the meeting at HQ."

"I- well- err… umm, yeah, I'm a little bothered" Shinji confessed.

Two hours earlier they had had a meeting for the apparent arrival of Unit-02. An angel had appeared at sea, and was destroyed by the Second Child in the first production type Evangelion, there he watched the video with the rest of the staff of NERV, and like most of them, he had been stunned by the grace in which the EVA fought with the Angel. The way it moved seemed like it was more dancing rather than fighting, it had leapt from battleship to destroyer to another battleship until it landed softly (for a 50-ft giant robot) on the flagship carrier _'Over the Rainbow'_. It had waited until the whale like Angel jumped over the ship to engage it, then sliced the creature almost in half at its belly with a progressive knife, forcibly 'fishing' the Angel towards two battleships they finished it off with a quick artillery volley afterwards.

All in all the display had been more than impressive, but that's what was bothering the 3rd Child.

Was this really the capabilities of a human pilot with superior training, or was it much more. He was a werewolf and Rei was a ghost, was the 2nd Child a mere human? Or was NERV in the habit of choosing monsters for its Pilots.

Shinji knew nothing about the pilot besides that fact that she was supposed to be some child genius. Maybe that was why she was so good at piloting, or maybe he was right and would mean that EVA could only be piloted by someone who was more that human, or less human, the same as him.

"It doesn't matter" Shinji grumbled as he shook his head, he looked at the girl next to him, "Hey Rei, I have to meet both Toji and Kensuke at the arcade. I don't mean to be rude but do you mind go-" he was cut off by the girl vanishing in a flicker of light, "-ing home… I hate it when she does that."

Shinji grumbled to himself as he drove to meet his friends, and little to his knowledge, to meet someone who would flip his world upside down more than it had already been.

_Two Blocks Away From The Arcade- Opposite Direction_

"Gott verdammt!" A fiery red headed 16 year old girl screamed as she walked down the street. She was in a very bad mood for a lot of reasons.

Reason number one: The SUN was out.

Sure, as long as she fed regularly and only stayed in it for a few hours, the sun did not burn her, but it still annoyed her to be out in the day. Oh, how she wished that the sun would set and night would surround her in it's comforting dark embrace like it used to be.

Reason number two: She was annoyed with the meeting she had just gotten out of, she was briefed on the 1st and 3rd Child's battles against the Angels. She couldn't help but watch in amazement at the video of Unit 01's first few battles. She noticed the way the EVA moved on the battlefield, somehow it reminded her of a wild animal, its movements were unpredictable, feral and uncontrollable. What bothered her more was that this _rookie's_ sync rate was almost as high as hers and the brat had just been recruited for less than a year. What right did he have to come in like he was something special, SHE was the top pilot, and SHE was going to remind everyone how special she really was when it comes to piloting the Evangelion.

Reason number three: The holy water icing on the garlic cake was what Kaji had said on the _Over the Rainbow _when she confronted him. He hated Vampires to the hilt. Her crush, the man she had fooled herself when she was alive into believing that she loved him, but in truth he hated what she was, what she had become. Worst of it all, she would forever been sixteen, she had believe that when she was older that he would fall for her advances. But she would never get older, not even another day. She would stay young and beautiful forever, too young in the eyes of many, including her eyes. Her chance for a normal love life went into a super nova.

All these things together insured that her day sucked harder than Glass Tiger's last album (AN#1). So she decided to indulge in one of her favorite things to do to pass the time: Going to the arcade and taking brats money after beating them into the ground. She loved winning, no matter what the game, no matter what the challenge. It made her feel fulfilled, satisfying her beyond all recognition. Nothing like a game of beat the losers at all the games they think their good at.

As she walked around the arcade area a scent reached her nose, at first it was faint, a new smell that she would have ignored usually, but the closer she got to the arcade the stronger the smell got. It was a mixture of fresh soil, leaves, fur, and sweat?

'_That smell is so__… intriguing!'_

It wasn't just the smell that started to get her attention, she was about a hundred feet away from the arcade when she felt it, the warm aura or heat that was coming from somewhere. However, unlike the sun that was a burning sensation that hurt when it glared down at her, the heat she was feeling was more like a wave of warmth that rolled off of her in slow comforting waves, just like the waves on a calm sea.

She had no idea what the hell it was, this comforting new feeling

Her worries and frustrations forgotten altogether, she slowed her pace, reaching out with her senses through the crowd. When the arcade came into sight Asuka enter stealthily with the silence that would make the best of her kind proud, staying hidden in the shadows, letting the dark corners cloak her as she searched for the scent that was driving her in a calm state. It was so strong, but not entirely unpleasant at her, being part of the undead, few things could breathe warmth into her cold self. For some reason the smell, it ran deep, wild and full of power. It was almost something to be feared and made her skin crawl, something very rare that happened to her.

She stayed close to the shadows, searching for the cause of the strange scent that haunted her. It began getting stronger and stronger until it was almost unbearable and it felt uncomfortably nice. She felt the burning in her that replaced the beat of her heart beat, until the burning grew so strong and hot, almost enough to fool herself into believing that her blood still was warm.

Then she saw him. She knew right away that it was him that was giving off the smell. It was his warmth that overwhelmed her. He wasn't anything overly special at first look. His skin was pale, not as pale as hers but still pale. He was tall, about six foot one, and well built, weighing in at about two hundred pounds. _'Very heavy for a guy like him…'_ His black hair was slightly shaggy, but what caught her attention the most was the boy's eyes.

His face was calm and handsome, yet the eyes were wild, fierce and feral.

As she watched the boy, he raised his head from the game he was playing with his two 'normal' friends and _sniffed_ the air. After a few seconds the boy shook his head and continued playing the game, the 2nd Child moved out of the shadows, concentrating on the boy as she made a bee-line towards him. Being so focused on the strange boy she bumped into some older punk with a Mohawk playing a game.

"What the FUCK!" the punk yelled as he turned towards Asuka. "Bitch, you cost me the high level! You better be ready to pay for my game!"

The punks were nothing but a lousy meal to Asuka and she was about to introduce these wanna-be's and his friends that had started gathering to a lot of broken bones when a shadow suddenly appeared over her. She turned to the shadow only to come face to face with a pair of grey blue wild eyes, "Excuse me," the boy said politely with a small smile, "But are these people bothering you?"

"Fuck off asshole!" the leader punk sneered and cracked his knuckles, clearly unafraid of the boy's immense size, "Get the fuck out of here or else…"

The grey blue eyed boy sighed loudly and said, "I guess I'll pick…'or else' then".

With a blink of an eye the boy struck the leader punk in the chest, at first had no effect since the speed he used was more than the naked eye or reflex could follow that sent the punk flying across the arcade. One of the other punks moved around behind the boy, Asuka noticed the boy's eyes moving from her to his side and without even flinching he did a famous _'Sweet Chin Music'_ to the punk who was sneaking up on him so hard that the punk flipped several times in mid-air before smashing into a game arcade and the screen shattered at the impact.

One of the other punks got close enough to grab Asuka's arm. Acting on her reflex, she spun around and delivered a jaw shattering round house kick to her attacker's face.

"I don't need _anyone_ protecting me, got it?" the 2nd Child growled at her protector and she stared into his eyes without flinching.

The boy offered her a small smile before punching a punk over her shoulder, "That much is obvious miss," the boy said nervously, "By the way, my name's Ikari Shinji."

Asuka went silent for a second, she knew that name, and it annoyed her a little bit- _'GOTT VERDAMNT!' _it was, that's it, it was the 3rd Child's name. She stopped herself because she wasn't about to blindly announce who she really was, especially since she chose to insult her rescuer instead, "I didn't need your help Mr. Ikari." she sneered at him.

"Well" Shinji smiled nervously "it wouldn't be very uncouth of myself if I let some girl get hurt on a pointless thing, and for me honestly, it isn't right letting a girl fight a bunch of punks. Women should be respected."

Asuka gritted her teeth to stop from blushing at his patronizing words, "Even if she's the pilot of an EVA?"

Shinji was shocked, since he had been wondering himself about the so-called 2nd child. Never in his wildest dreams did he believe that she would have been this god-given beautiful. He knew that she was sixteen, more like he felt like it, but she looked more like she was seventeen or eighteen. Who was he to judge anyway, since he was the same age technically, but looked like he's in his twenties.

There was nothing about this girl that wasn't stunningly beautiful, from her perfect pale skin to her soft red hair with blond highlights, he also noted that her body was built for grace, and flowing movement. Her long smooth coltish legs spilled out of her yellow sundress that accentuated her figure. Yet her most beautiful quality was easily her alluring blue eyes, his mind pounded on him how they glimmered like the blue ocean in the bright sun, and then there was her _scent_. Her smell was definitely not human, he could tell right away since it was different. It wasn't anything he smelled before, actually it smelled more like mixed strawberry and the ocean.

Shinji got over his shock and scolded himself as he forced out an intelligent answer, "Umm- Well, that just means I'd still have to help, because- umm- as a comrade-in-arms instead of a kid trying to be chivalrous."

The Wolf boy smiled at the Vampire girl, but felt awkward when his grin was met with a piercing glare.

"Listen here you over-grown knucklehead," Asuka hissed at the boy as she strode in front of his chest, she looked up into his grey blue eyes with her clear blue ones with the same glare that could sour grapes in an instant, "I've been training for this all of my life to fight the Angels, I do NOT need HELP from the LIKES of you!"

He took a step back, one of the first time he did it, as the girl's eye flashed red at what she said, "Whoa… I-I'm… just trying to do my job," Shinji reassured the girl his voice losing a bit of its conviction at the end.

"Well now that I'm here, you don't need to, I can handle all of it by myself," Asuka sneered at him, "Listen 3rd Child, the only reason you have more Angel kills than me is because my EVA Unit-02 took longer to build, and that is because it's BETTER since IT is the FIRST production type, and you better not get in my way! Got that?"

'_Oh dear…' _Shinji's tongue and thought was forced back as Asuka glared at him with black-bile hate, '_I'm going to have to work with her from now on, and she already wants to kill me. Great…'_

"Ahem!" Their little staring contest was interrupted by someone coughing, they both turned to see Kensuke with his fist held up to his mouth, "Is she a _friend _of yours Ikari?" he asked, grinning slightly at his friend's misfortune.

Asuka stomped her way towards Kensuke and grabbed the shorter boy by the front of his shirt, "Now, you better listen good, you little chronic masturbator," she growled at him and flinched at her aggressiveness, "I'm the 2nd Child, Pilot of the superior production type Unit-02, and I don't associate with weaklings like you and the other" she leered at Shinji and returned her gaze at the military otaku, "pilots unless I have to, so why don't you get it right, that I am _not_ his," pointing a thumb over her back at Shinji, "friend, tomodachi or whatever the hell you call it here in Japan!"

Kensuke started to sweat at her ferocity, "Right- got it- no problem- not his friend, got it." he gulped as her stare sharpened.

"And as for you!" Asuka growled, turning back to face Shinji, "Tell me where Misato's apartment is, I'm supposed to meet her soon."

"Umm… well… I-I was going that way," Shinji said, unsure of how to speak to this volatile girl, "My car is in the parking lot at the back, if you want I can take you home- I mean- I c-can drive you there if you want to," he offered blushing at his slip of tongue not sure that she would accept or not.

"Watch your mouth 3rd Child," Asuka huffed and walked out of the arcade, then she turned to the alley leading to the back parking lot.

"I take that as a 'yes', I guess…" Shinji sighed heavily, he turned to his friends and nodded knowingly, which goes in the lines of 'good luck' or 'I'll pray for your funeral', before following the red head, "She is _volatile__!"_

When he finally entered the parking lot, he saw that it was empty, except for his shiny car, and a white piece of crap next to it, a least known model of a car that was more suited for being a golf cart than an actual car. Asuka was standing under a lamppost next to the white 'car' and he almost snickered, _'She honestly does not think that I'm driving that?'_

Shinji approached her cautiously, but not cautiously enough since the German red head was able to grab him by the front of his shirt, lift him up a bit, and slam him against the lamppost hard enough to deeply dent it and actually drag him off of his feet.

"All right 3rd Child," Asuka hissed, her eyes red and her long fangs showing from her seductive lips, "You are going to tell me what you are and you're gonna do it right about the fucking now!"

"Whoa!" Shinji gasped at her, "I-if you just put me down I'll tell you," Asuka's eyes narrowed with suspicion before letting the boy go. "Thanks," Shinji said, straightening out his shirt and taking a deep breath, "I am a Were-"

"A werewolf?" she repeated with a small sneer, "What's that? A guy who turns into a dog-faced boy when it's a full moon?"

"Not exactly," Shinji sighed, "Werewolves can change any time they want to, but we _have_ to change during the three nights that the moon is full, and we're a _lot_ bigger than the dog-faced boy." Shinji looked at her with a confused look on his face, "err- shouldn't your sire have told you all this?"

"Sire?" Asuka asked blankly as she raised her eyebrow.

"Sire, the werewolf or vampire that changes a human into- their own kind," Shinji explained kindly, he was both cautious and shy at this, "My sire, Roy, told me all about your kind. I would have thought vampires would have done same since we're basically- not so human."

"I never met my- _'sire'_" Asuka whispered looking away from the boy, "I was turned seven months ago, I just woke up under the dirt in a ditch with the taste of blood in my mouth and some flashes of being attacked," she turned to the boy, angry now as her eyes flared red, "No one told me shit, I didn't ask for this, I didn't ask to be made into some fucking monster!"

Shinji winced at her tone and words, he honestly felt bad for the girl. Unlike him, she hadn't been given a choice, she was a victim, "I'm sorry."

"I didn't ask for your pity," Asuka snarled, turning away again from the boy. "J-just take me to see Misato alright…"

"O-okay" Shinji straightened up and walked to the driver's side of his car and waited for the girl, when she didn't move he gave her a puzzled look, "What, you honestly thought I was driving _that_?" he asked as he pointed to the white… _'car'_.

"You own _that _car?" Asuka asked in disbelief as she stomped towards the passenger side, the black car was a classic, it was one of the most powerful and it was beautiful, he definitely knows his history.

"Hey!" Shinji warned, giving her a stern look and the fierceness in his eyes intensified, "You can say what you want about Unit-01, you can say what you want about me and my friends, but if you say anything about _my_ _baby_, you're walking, understand?"

"Didn't say a thing puppy," Asuka rolled her eyes before getting into the passenger seat, stupid boys and their toys, but truth be told, she was surprised that someone like Shinji would have such a powerful car, she almost grinned at the sound of the car as he revved it up and eased out of the parking lot. There was so much about this _rookie _that was confusing for her and the only time he had actually stood up to her was when she made a comment about his car, not that she actually meant it.

They drove in silence for a while until Asuka decided to break it first, "Tell me Shinji," she said not looking at him and keeping her eyes outside, "… how were you changed?"

Shinji kept silent for awhile, he took a deep breath and began to confess, "There isn't much to tell, I was almost killed in a hit and run over a year ago. Roy McCaster, my_ sire_, found me dying and asked me if I want to live, but not as a human, would I take that chance or die instead."

"What did you say?"

"Obviously, he changed me, I told him I wasn't much of a human being anyways so I'll take it," Shinji smiled a bit as he thought about that fateful night, and how his choice changed him in more than just the physical aspect of his life, "He bit my shoulder, forgot to bite him for that, it hurts like hell, and that changed me. Then he lets me in into his pack and taught me everything I know about the supernatural."

"Supernatural huh?" Asuka raised an eyebrow as she leered at him, "Like ghost and stuff out of the ordinary?"

"Like ghost and werewolves and vampires and demons- yeah, basically all the stuff out of the ordinary," Shinji peeked at her at the rearview mirror, it dawned on him that she probably didn't know anything about her own kind. He couldn't imagine what it would have been like to be turned without Roy and the rest of the pack there to support him, to give him every answer to his questions, to discuss the same situations, and most important of all, to have someone who understand.

"I- I could share what I know with you if you want-"

"What's the catch?" Asuka asked her eyes haughty as she stared at him.

"There's no catch…" he reassured her, but his voice turned stern again, "Just don't do anything or say anything about my car, she's my _baby._"

"Boys," Asuka snorted and turned on the radio,_ The Man Who Sold The World (Unplugged) by Nirvana_, filled the car as her eyebrow raised a notch, "American rock?"

"The radio is a part of the car."

"Didn't say anything."

_Misato's Apartment _

"I'm home! Misato, are you here?" Shinji called out as he entered the apartment, halfway through the threshold, the scent of smoke reached his nostrils.

"What the-"

"Hi Shinji!" Misato said as she stuck her head out into the hallway, "I was just making something to eat"

"Oh god, I should have known..." Shinji sighed and mumbled under his breath as he rushed forward to save the kitchen from whatever force of evil that his guardian was about to unleash into the world. Before he got too far he turned around toward Asuke "I invite you in" he whispered before taking off towards the kitchen. Misato calmly allowed him to take over and walked up to Asuka gave her a warm hug.

"Asuka, it's been such a long time," Misato squealed before stepping away to get a better look at the red-head. Misato's face paled a bit when she realized just how much the 2nd Child had changed in the one year since she had seen her last, it seemed for her to be… unnatural. "Wow," she exclaimed as she recovered from the shock, "You've become so beautiful!"

"Of course!" Asuka smirked and she did a pose in front of the Captain, "Was there ever a doubt that I was beautiful? Also, Germany is known for having the most beautiful women!"(AN#2)

The truth was that she had changed more than what was natural for a girl in a year as Shinji had noticed awhile ago, her skin had become paler and smoother, she was much taller and looked more mature as her figure developed to its fullest for a teenager and her ample bosom accentuated her overall body figure. Her hair shone brighter, it was more lush, and had a nice bounce to it that looked like she had her own personal hairdresser. Her beauty made super models look like drag queens as boys and men alike were mesmerized by her looks.

Misato shook her head in disbelief, "Yeah, I know! It's just that- you've changed so much!" she swept Asuka up into another hug, this one was to give her enough time to get a hold of herself. She had a gut feeling that something wasn't right about this whole set-up. Shinji was one thing, since he was a complete stranger to her, but Asuka too? Was NERV doing something to these children to cause them to change so much?

"Hey Misato…" Shinji called from the kitchen, "Why are there boxes everywhere?"

"That would be my belongings, Affenschwanz!" Asuka yelled back, "I'm living with Misato now!" There was a sound of a frying pan falling from the kitchen, and they could actually hear the crashing of someone's jaw to the ground that caused Misato to giggle.

"What's that giggle for?" she asked her 'new' guardian suspiciously.

"Oh, I forgot to tell you over the phone that Shinji is staying here as well," Misato said innocently as she bats her eyes bashfully at Asuka.

"WHAT?" The red head screeched and all the glasses inside the house almost shattered.

"Oh, by the way Shinji!" Misato called at him as she dragged Asuka by the hand towards the kitchen, breaking the werewolf out of his stupor, "Vice-Commander Fuyutsuki left a letter for you in your room. It must be important, since the Vice-Commander said I'd be fired if I read it."

Shinji hastily cleaned up making sure that Misato wouldn't be making any more _'unstable concoctions'_ andquickly walked to his room where he found an envelope on his bed with his name on it. He opened it with haste and skimmed over it, then re-read it a second time.

_Pilot__ Shinji Ikari,_

_As I am sure you are already fully aware of, Pilot Soryu is a vampire, a creature of other__-worldly origin. It has fallen on me to ask you to keep an eye on the 2__nd__ Child, due to the fact that you have more experience __with the unnatural than she does. I have arranged it so that Pilot Soryu will be staying with you and __Captain Katsuragi and I am sure you will do the best that you can in doing this 'request' from me. _

_This is for the best, for both of you._

_Kozo __Fuyutsuki_

_V__ice-Commander _

Shinji sighed as he tore the note into small little pieces so his guardian couldn't read it, he could hear Asuka and the Captain arguing about the living arrangements in the living room so he stealthily snuck into the kitchen to fix the abominations that Misato would have called a meal. Truth be told, the cure for cancer, even HIV, was in her cooking, the problem was that if you looked at it in the eye you'd turn to stone, pretty much like the medusa.

After twenty minutes, Shinji produced three plates of chicken fried rice, his own plate consisting of the serving dish itself, which have a towering pile of rice in it. Asuka stared at her plate when he placed it in front of her, "Umm-" she muttered under her breath before looking up at him, "I'm really not hungry right now, I was thinking of going out for something later anyways, _'when it's night'_ you know?" she said while giving Shinji a meaningful look.

'_Oh!'_ Shinji thought, _'I forgot, __Vampires don't really eat that much real food, they mainly just drink blood,'_ he took her plate then and added the contents to his, earning himself a questioning look from the young German, "What? I eat a lot," he said defensively as he began to dig in.

"Groffh spfurth," '_Growth spurt'_ Misato mumbled with her mouth full, "Mmm!" she squealed as her eyes widened at the taste of the food, "Shinfi, youf oust dhid yousself fahgain!" _'Shinji, you just outdid yourself again!'_

"Th-thanks, I guess, and try not to talk with your mouth full," Shinji smiled his cheeks blushing at the praise, as they finished the meal in idle talk, well mainly the girls talked as the 3rd Child merely listened to the two of them, he was doing the dishes when they all heard the doorbell ringing.

"I'll get it" Misato yelled as she stood up from the tatami mat as she and Asuka were watching something on the TV. Shinji heard the sound of the door opening and then a quick scuffle at the doorway.

"Mmph!" came Misato's muffled cry as Shinji quickly dropped the dish he was cleaning and rushed towards the doorway, he stopped in his tracks when he saw a man with long hair in ponytail kissing Misato passionately. She finally broke the kiss by kneeing the man in the crotch, "Kaji!" Misato yelled as she took a step back and stood beside the young Werewolf, "What the hell do you think you're doing here? And what was that-" her eyes were slits as she vented her anger, "- assault for!"

Kaji seemed unfazed by Misato's aggressive attitude, he simply gave his roguish grin at her question, "I thought since I'm going to be working with NERV I'd drop in to say hi, and you say 'assault' come now that's not the first time right, and I also want to see how my old ward is fitting in," he explained casually, the roguish grin never leaving his face.

"Kaji?" came Asuka's voice from the hallway, Shinji looked behind him to see the redhead standing a few paces from him. For a split second she smiled and looked like she was going to rush forward to hug the man, but she stopped short. Her smile changed drastically, from smile to confused frown, frown to sad eye, and sad eyes to enraged scowl. Asuka turned around, stomped all the way back to her room and slammed the door shut.

"Care to explain that you asshole?" Misato asked while crossing her arms, still not leaving the six foot wall of flesh beside her that was still recovering from the kissing scene earlier.

Kaji let out a heavy sigh, "It's pretty simple," he said with a small sad smile, "Young girls tend to have infatuations on older men, and it's never pretty when the older men have to break the young girls' hearts and tell them that it isn't right."

Shinji felt something hot and angry stir in his chest, but quickly calmed it down as he began to think in a rational manner again. He then took in this new arrival's appearance, Kaji was tall, but shorter than him of course, he wore a white shirt under a mud brown trench coat. He smelled of different herbs, old blood, perfume and gunpowder. A silver necklace was wrapped around his right wrist, and the chains were made from small crosses, he also noticed that the man's eyes were watchful and sharp.

"So this is the 3rd Child that I've heard all about," Kaji smiled as he offered a hand to the young pilot "You're a lot bigger than I'd imagine"

Shinji took the offered hand, making sure to avoid touching the silver chain, "I've been going through a couple of growth spurts, I grew about two inches since I got here."

"And gained another twenty pounds" grumbled Misato still not leaving his side, and secretly displeased she hadn't yet figured out the truth about the young boy, and more displeased that she now had to figure out why Asuka had changed so much as well.

"I had been hoping to talk to the famed 3rd Child, I guess now is my chance," Kaji said as the door closed behind him, "I've been wondering how someone with no training could have gotten into an Evangelion and reach such a high synch rate, and after that you killed the Angel, a feat that no pilot or simulation expected."

Shinji thought for a while before answering, he was inconveniently inquisitive too, "Instincts," Shinji finally whispered at him, "When I'm in the EVA, as much as I hate getting inside the thing, instinct is the only thing that helps me. I give in to the little piece of myself that needs to destroy, and I'm able to fight, because I _must_ fight," he didn't mean to, but his eyes flashed a feral stare and his hairs stood on end.

"So, in other words you're a natural born pilot-" Kaji concluded with a smile, "It's a good thing that we were lucky enough to have someone like you as a pilot, or else we might all be dead."

The sound of a door slamming open echoed through the apartment, the 2nd Child stomped her way past the group that were gathered in the hallway, "I'm going for a walk," Asuka hissed as she passed Misato and left the apartment, the door slammed shut as she left.

Shinji looked at the two adults and sighed heavily remembering the Vice-Commander's words, "I guess I should go make sure she's okay huh?" talking to no one in particular as he made to reach for his pair of trainers.

"I'll come with you," Kaji offered, his face no longer smiling. Misato opened her mouth to protest, but he just waved it off, "It's ok, I'm her old guardian anyway, if something might go wrong I should be at least help a little right?"

They both left one after the other as they pursued Asuka, Shinji knew it would be easy since he was already familiar with her scent and he would just follow it, but walked at a slow pace so that he would not tip Kaji off that he knew where he was going. After walking for six blocks in silence, the 3rd Child decided to break it, "So what is it that you do at NERV exactly Mr. Kaji?"

"Well, I am a- errgh!" Kaji started to cough violently, the man took deep rattling breaths to steady himself, only to fail as the coughing fit puts him to his knees, Shinji tried to help the man by steadying him. As he placed a hand on Kaji's chest he immediately felt something that shouldn't be there, it was like a mass that had accumulated in his, or rather 'inside' the man's chest.

"Are you all right?" he asked both curious and concerned, "I may be wrong, but it feels like you got something stuck in your lungs."

"They call it cancer Shinji," Kaji said as he wiped the red spit from his mouth, he steadied himself after a few breaths and cleared his throat once more, "Well," Kaji continued as if the coughing fit never happened and began to walk again, "Officially I'm an agent of the UN sent to help in whatever way I can, but unofficially…" he stared Shinji in the eye and became deadly serious, "… I'm an exorcist."

The Werewolf stopped in his tracks, his eyes fixed on Kaji's own pair. Roy mentioned them before, they were experts in dealing with angry spirits and demons. They sometimes dealt with other supernatural creatures when they posed a threat to the innocent, but more importantly it meant that Agent Kaji knew that Asuka was a Vampire and that he was a werewolf.

"Why does NERV need an exorcist?" Shinji asked when he forced his legs to work again_._

"The _'Angels'_ are trying to destroy the world," Kaji explained as he lit a cigarette out of nowhere via a flame shooting from his finger tips, "It's unknown if demons have any involvement or if they will, at any rate, as a precaution I was sent in case any demons really do try to interfere, so that I can deport them back to hell, where they belong."

Shinji nodded in understanding. It made sense actually. If Armageddon is on the line, well, everyone would want a piece of the cake.

"So you're really just here to help?"

"Yeah, help," the exorcist half muttered as they walked together, "I should probably go over some things you might need to know, especially about vampires."

Shinji raised an eyebrow, the topic swung to very thin ice, "Such as?"

"Like how to _kill_ a vampire" Kaji said putting emphasis on the word kill, "I know you most likely know a wooden stake to the heart will do them in. Honestly, for a werewolf killing a vampire should be really easy, beheading would always works. Tearing out the heart will work as well, garlic is bullshit, it just stinks and you smell like pasta, even your kind hate it right? Holy water would kill them, if you made them take a bath in it or you manage to drown them in it. Sunlight can only kill them if they go without feeding for a few days, which rarely happens."

The burning in Shinji's chest had returned, this time he let it smolder inside, fueling his insides, "Why are you telling me this Kaji?"

Kaji gave him a sideway look, "Asuka's a new vampire, I really don't like discussing it, but there may be a time where you might have to kill her."

"Why do you say that?" Shinji could barely contain himself, his voice starting to shake, both in shock and in rage, how could this former guardian tell him how to kill his former charge.

"Vampires are filthy, evil creatures," Kaji sneered at no one and took a long drag of the cigarette, he said the word vampire with as much contempt as he could muster, "They may try to keep their humanity for a while, but after sometime they all give in to the darkness calling to them. They should all just be killed-urgh!"

Kaji choked as the 3rd Child grabbed him by the throat and slammed the exorcist against the building they were walking alongside with, "Why don't you tell me what the hell does that make any different from a werewolf, from me?" Shinji snarled at him as his eyes turned yellow, his muscles beginning to quake at the suppressed anger, "Why shouldn't I just kill you right now, eat your innards and piss in your carcass huh?" He proceeded to lift Kaji and the man's feet dangled in the air, his face turning blue and experiencing pin-point hemorrhage, "Does it even matter to you? If we're werewolves or vampires? Did you think we want this? To be less than human!" a fist connected on a wall beside Kaji's face and the cement cracked at the force of the punch.

Kaji, who was choking for air, chose that moment to press the silver cross against Shinji's hand that was clasped on his neck. The flesh burned and hissed, but Shinji barely flinched and he only pressed harder against Kaji's throat.

"Y-y-you!" Kaji's eyes widened in horror as he realized a fatal fact, he gasped as he pressed the silver cross on his arm firmly, but it was futile, "Y-y-you're an A-A-A-Alpha!"

Shinji gave Kaji's throat one last tight squeeze before letting go, the exorcist fell to the ground in a heap, he turned from the agent and took in a deep breath, "Say Kaji," he whispered, his voice rasping and less human now, "I'm pretty sure I can find Asuka by myself, so thanks for coming with me," he then walked away, leaving Kaji to collect himself or whatever is left of him. The 3rd Child didn't care about the man, damn it, out there was a girl, one who was hurt and angry, someone like him, in need of help, whether she wanted it or not.

_A Few Blocks Away_

'_Stupid Shinji! Stupid Kaji! Stupid Angels for dying so easily! It's not fair, it's not fair, it's not fair! I should be the best pilot! No, I am the best pilot! Why is he getting the attention!'_ Asuka's thoughts rage a war in her mind, _'MY LIFE IS EVA! My PRIDE cannot be undone!'_

She didn't really know who to be more angry with, the stupid Angels, Kaji, or the idiotic and incredibly warm Shinji. Every time she thought she could hate the boy her thoughts drift to what he was. He wasn't human, not any more, he may have had a choice unlike her, but he still had to deal with the loss of his humanity just like her.

The call of hunger stirred in her, breaking her from her thoughts, she observed the street until she found an alleyway which she stood at the entrance of for a short time. Soon a man in his early thirties walked by, and she simply made eye contact with him as she allured the man into stepping into the alleyway. After that it was easy for her to bite him to feed, she left the man asleep against the alley wall after she had had her fill, careful not to kill him.

As she tried to leave the alley a rather large shadow blocked her way.

"Where're you going baby?" The shadow was a man, a filthy one by the smell of him. Asuka was about to _'charm' _the man when she sensed others with him. Two behind the first and three more coming up from the other end of the alley. Luckily though she left her meal well hidden, they missed him completely, the 2nd Child cursed under her breath. There was simply too many for her to _'charm' _and it wasn't her forte on a large-scale, she might have to fight her way out.

"Get out of my way now" Asuka growled her aura changing into an aggressive one, yet the men around her sensed nothing and laughed sounding like a pack of jackals.

"No, I don't think we will darling," the first man grinned stepping forward, Asuka could smell their intentions, all of them were filled with rape and murder. They were practically the scum of the world. She readied herself and prepared to take these fools out, she pushed out her fingernails as they began to harden and turn to razor-like claws, but before she could lash out at them, she heard a sound that was quite indescribable for her. It sounded like something breaking, like bone snapping in two, then the sound of something soft squishing, and finally the sound of some fluids spraying on the cold floor.

Every conscious head turned to the source of the curious sound, the two men that were farthest from her now lay flat upon the ground, but only that that they weren't exactly lying down. Their frail bodies have been crushed, they were crushed beyond recognition under the weight of the beast that had landed on top of them.

"Shinji," the 2nd Child muttered under her breath.

She immediately knew 'what' or rather 'who' it was as two yellow feral eyes stared at all of them, and a mixture of emotion welled-up inside of her. The surviving man nearest to the two dead men remained blissfully ignorant, as he instinctively move away from the beast, it suddenly swung a furry claw forward.

The claw caught the man's lower jaw and it promptly flew away from his head, the pain blanked every sensation in his body and rendered him unable to scream his pain, the beast swung its claw again and caught the man's arm and chest, sending blood and viscera flying on the alley wall. There were no screams from the man as he collapsed into a puddle of his own blood.

Three dead men, three more to die.

The three vagabond nearest Asuka started to scream, but remained rooted to the spot, one snapped out of it and started to run away from the carnage. The other two died faster as the werewolf ran headlong towards them in a span of seconds and ripped one's head clean off with its jaws as the victim's body slowly spun to the ground with its mangled half of a head dropping next to it. His partner that stood beside him received a furious swipe that could stop a freight truck that ripped the man's torso in half, his knees buckled and dropped to the ground, the other half stared from afar, utter horror frozen in the man's death mask.

Sounds of broken bones, skin ripped apart, and muscles popping out of its tendons were sickening, yet it was Asuka, now relaxed amidst the massacre, and Shinji who were the only ones able to witness it all.

The last man got to the end of the alleyway before the creature pulled a jagged piece of bone from one of the mangled arms of one of its victims, throwing the makeshift bone spear, it pierced the man's throat, violently tearing muscle tissues. Screams of excruciating pain never made it pass the man's lips.

Asuka stood in the middle of the blood and carnage, knowing full well who the creature was, and what it was.

"Shinji!" she growled at the werewolf, her aura returning to its aggressive state, "I didn't need your help! I could have dealt with them all by myself- ARGH!"

She was cut off when a furry claw grabbed her by the neck and chest, she was then smashed against the alley wall, the 2nd Child was surprised at the strength that he had, were all werewolves uncontrollable pieces of power? The beast growled at her, his jaws so close to her face she could smell death on his breath. In those precious seconds that he stood close to her and his sharp teeth inches from her neck, she wondered if vampires could go to heaven when, suddenly the beast changed its behavior. It threw Asuka for a good 2 feet away from itself before howling in pain.

The change was excruciatingly painful, as fur receded, pores opened up and skin returned to normal, his bones cracked audibly and shrank back into place. Large muscle shriveled away painfully until the form of the beast became fittingly human again. The tail retracted and his teeth lost their obvious sharpness, all the while Shinji let loose howls that transformed into high pitch screams of pain as the changing was his least favorite part of being a werewolf. When all was finally said and done, a young man called Shinji Ikari stood where a monster had once stood.

Asuka was about to tear into Shinji when she recovered, when the boy fell to the ground on all fours, then laid on his side writhing in pain. The boy doubled-over to vomit a black red bile, this continued over and over again, the boy would grunt, screech once or twice, scream in pain when it was too much, and vomit blood and much more than blood.

The 2nd Child merely watched in horror, are werewolves supposed to be like this, she was scared and unsure of what to do. When Shinji finally stopped convulsing and throwing up, she cleared her throat before asking, "Are you alright… 3rd Child?"

"No!" the boy rasped, wiping the blood from his mouth, "N-n-no I am n-n-not all r-right!" he managed before throwing up again and shaking violently. After the shaking stopped, Shinji sat up against the alley wall. The naked boy took ragged breaths and held a hand to his face, "I-I'm so s-sorry if I h-hurt you," he managed to finally say.

"I'm fine," Asuka said, trying to keep concern out of her voice, "What was that all about?"

Shinji was silent for a while before answering, his eyes closed as she looked at him intensely, his warmth somehow returning to its normal state, "In truth, I- I've never… I've never killed a human before."

"Why did you?" she asked her eyes transfixed on his pale face.

Shinji dropped his hand from his face and looked up at the girl, his body glistened with sweat, she would have blushed if she could as his gaze intensified at her, "They were going to- they would have- their pungent smell- they've done it before! I could tell what they wanted, and they would have done it again if they had a chance-"

He stopped short as he finished the sentenced in a whisper, "I can't let them get away, I can't let them to even try."

Asuka heaved a great sigh, _'Okay,_ _I have no idea what to do now…'_ Shinji was obviously hurt, emotionally, psychologically, mentally, after the massacre he just did, but the 'kicker' was he did it all to help her, knowing well that she didn't need his help, yet he still killed, killed for her, he gave up his _'innocence' _for her. The 2nd Child's thoughts running wild with questions that went unanswered. For now.

"I guess…" The boy broke her from her thoughts "I guess I AM just a monster…"

"No" Asuka said firmly, looking the boy in the eye, alarmed that the ferocity it once held now was blank, "You are not a monster, you only did what you thought was… was right for me," Asuka kneeled down beside the young werewolf, "Look Shinji, you know I didn't really need your help… since, you know already what I am right?" Asuka looked away, trying to keep herself from blushing, "… but thanks. Stupid."

Shinji smiled a bit at this and his eyes glittered once more with life, until a new scent made its way through the lingering smell of blood, viscera and human fluids. He could see a man standing at the entrance to the alley and his mouth opened in an O shape, "K-Kaji" he started to stutter, "I-I… it was- well- we we're-"

"Don't sweat it kid," Kaji assured him as he smiled at him and waved him off, "I got the gist on what happened," he took out a cell phone and started to dial, "You're not the first person to go amuck on rapists, but let me call Section-2, they'll be here to clean up this mess and to do some cover up."

The man also threw a small pile of clothes beside Shinji, including a pair of boxers, "Oh, you left this in the alley next door when you changed-"

As the boxers landed in front of them, it then occurred to both of them that one of them was actually butt-naked, and he saw at the corner of his eye that Asuka was looking down on him mesmerized on something. Shinji looked down at himself following the 2nd Child's line of gaze.

"Waaah!" Shinji yelled and covered his _'tenders'_ in a futile effort to act decent "Don't look!"

"What's wrong you pervert?" Asuka teased, the glint in her eyes was dangerous, "You weren't too shy to cover up a minute ago little Shinji. But, as I can see, maybe _little _is the problem, let me take a better look."

He jumped away as the 2nd Child made a move to grab him, "Waaah! No! Ahh! Stop it!"

"Come here, I'll be gentle"

"Kaji! Help me! Please! Sharp claws! Sharp claws!"

The exorcist sighed and walked away.

"Ahh, kids…"

**To be continued …**

AN#1: That's right Alan Frew, come get me

AN#2: When I was 16 my German friend had an older sister (19) who was tall, sexy, beautiful and liked younger men. So sue me if I love German women, she rocked my world.

AN: Sorry I have been away for so long. I was in a bad place. I will try to start chapter five soon. Thank you for reviewing. Every review is important to me.


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